At least four Yemeni soldiers have been killed in clashes with Houthi rebels in northeast Yemen, an army official said on Sunday.
Soldiers were responding to a
Houthi "
surprise attack " in Marib province on Saturday night, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The toll of the clashes was confirmed by medical sources in Marib, who also reported, as well as the military source, several wounded soldiers.
The fighting ended a few hours after the initial Houthi attack which targeted government positions in the locality of Harib, south of the city of Marib.
We did not immediately know the balance sheet on the rebel side.
Read alsoIn Yemen, rebel attacks raise fears of an escalation
Clashes between the Houthis, close to Iran, and the government forces, supported by Saudi Arabia, are relatively frequent in Marib, an oil-rich region and the last stronghold of power in the North.
According to the UN, the civil war that started in 2014 left hundreds of thousands dead, millions displaced, and left two-thirds of the population in need of aid, with a situation close to famine in large scale.
A UN-brokered ceasefire, which came into effect in April 2022, has significantly reduced hostilities.
It expired in October, the belligerents not having reached an agreement allowing it to be renewed, but the fights remain relatively rare.