Yemeni forces on Monday (January 23rd) captured the port of Mokha as they pushed to oust the Houthis (Ansarallah) from the Red Sea coastline, AFP reported.
An official statement said Yemeni forces recaptured the whole city, almost three weeks after launching an offensive against the Houthis and their allies on Yemen's south-western coast.
But a military commander in the field said forces loyal to President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi were still fighting the Houthis on the southern outskirts of Mokha.
Pro-Hadi forces launched an offensive on January 7th to retake the Dhubab district overlooking the Bab al-Mandab strait, a key maritime route connecting the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Coalition warplanes and helicopters have been pounding the Houthis in support of pro-Hadi forces, military sources said.
Medics and security sources said Sunday that clashes in Yemen killed at least 66 people in 24 hours.
Coalition airstrikes and fighting near Bab al-Mandab killed at least 52 fighters among the Houthis and their allies, while 14 members of the pro-Hadi forces also were killed.
