Heavy fighting erupted in southern Yemen near Aden airport on Friday when local militia attacked Shi'ite Houthi rebels in a push to drive them from the district, residents and fighters said.
Saudi-led forces also made four air strikes on a military base near the airport, a source in the southern militia told Reuters.
A Saudi-led coalition began air strikes in Yemen on March 26 in a campaign to restore Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power. He fled in March, after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized the capital Sanaa in September and then thrust into central and south Yemen.
Aden is Yemen's commercial hub. Its airport has been closed since fighting began but its port provides sporadic access for desperately needed humanitarian aid to enter the country.
Houthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh are concentrated around Aden's districts of Khor Maksar, Crater and Moalla.
The fighting in Khor Maksar has killed four southern militia fighters and 15 Houthis so far, the militia source said.
Later on Friday Houthis fired shells at Saudi Arabia's southwestern province of Jizan, according to their official Twitter account. There was no immediate information about casualties.
Saudi forces and the Houthis have been trading fire across the border since the Arab alliance began its military operations.
Reuters
Comments About This Article
Please fill the fields below.