Houthis report intercepting two Saudi F-15 fighter jets

TUNIS, September 16. /TASS/. Units from the Ansar Allah (Houthi) rebel movement have intercepted two F-15s of the Saudi Air Force in the Taiz Governorate, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed in a statement on Wednesday.

According to it, the two war planes "were targeted with several locally-made anti-aircraft missiles" as they departed from the Khamis Mushait Air Base and "were forced to retreat immediately."

The situation in Yemen escalated sharply in early September when the rebel movement launched an offensive in the country’s southwest. At the same time, it began carrying out missile and drone strikes on Red Sea coastal areas and the outskirts of the city of Taiz, seeking to sever access routes to the port of al-Mocha and advance toward areas along the strategic Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.

On September 11, the Houthi military spokesperson announced that Ansar Allah units had begun an operation on Yemen’s west coast to push back Saudi forces. According to him, the operation was due to "attacks on civilians, villages and areas on the west coast by Saudi-backed forces, which have been going on for several years." Ansar Allah Political Bureau member Hizam al-Asad confirmed to TASS on September 12 that the Houthis had concluded an operation to take control of areas in western Yemen adjacent to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.