More than 150 Houthis dead in Yemen raids, says Saudi coalition

Saudi Arabia-led coalition in Yemen said on Saturday that it had eliminated more than 150 Houthi rebels within last 24 hours in raids around Marib, a pro-government bastion.

The Saudi-led military coalition backs Yemen's internationally recognised government. The coalition has reported near-daily strike against the Houthi rebels who are backed by Iran. The coalition has claimed high losses in each strike.

The rebels, who have for months waged an offensive against Marib, rarely comment on losses. AFP cannot independently verify the Saudi tolls that total more than 2,000 dead in air strike since October.

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"Fourteen military vehicles were destroyed and more than 157 terrorist elements eliminated" in the latest raids, the coalition said in a statement carried by the Saudi state news agency SPA.

The air strikes targeted two regions of oil-rich Marib province, Al-Jawf in the north and the south's Al-Bayda, it said, as well as Sirwah, west of Marib city.

The Huthis began a major push to seize the city in February and, after a lull, they renewed their offensive in September.

Marib is the embattled government's last stronghold in the north. A loyalist military official acknowledged Tuesday that the Huthis have made advances on the ground.

Yemen's civil war began in 2014 when the Huthis seized the capital Sanaa, prompting Saudi-led forces to intervene to prop up the government the following year.

Tens of thousands of people have died and millions displaced in what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

(With inputs from agencies)