ISLAMABAD – Yemen’s Houthi rebels said they captured many Saudi soldiersand officers in a large operation near the border between the two countrieson Saturday, shortly after the kingdom agreed to a limited ceasefire withthe Iranian-backed group.
If true, the escalation will likely deal a blow to efforts to end a warthat’s killed thousands and triggered one of the world’s worst humanitariandisasters. Saudi Arabia mobilized a military coalition in 2015 to backYemen’s internationally-recognized government against the Shiite rebels,Bloomberg has reported.
The Houthis, in a statement carried by the Saba news agency, said theydestroyed three enemy brigades after “just 72 hours of the operation.”
Thousands of people have been taken prisoners, including “many Saudicommanders, officers and soldiers.” A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalitionfighting in Yemen didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
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The announcement comes almost two weeks after the Houthis took credit forthe devastating attack on key Saudi Aramco oil facilities that brieflyhalved the country’s output and rattled global markets this month. The U.S.and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for the attack, which they said wasn’tlaunched from Yemen.
Yahya Saree, a spokesman for the Houthi-controlled forces, said thosecaptured would be paraded on the group’s TV network on Sunday, the BBCreported.
