Fresh Yemen clashes kill more than 60: military, medical sources

Fresh Yemen clashes kill more than 60: military, medical sources.

Key points

• Fighting between Yemen's Saudi-backed administration forces and the country's Houthi rebels killed more than 60 residents on Saturday, including civilians, medical and military sources informed AFP.
• A administration official blamed the strike on the bus, travelling between Taiz and the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised administration in Aden, on the Houthis.
• On Friday, the fighting killed 129 individuals, according to an AFP tally compiled from a number of sources.
• The fighting between the Houthis and administration troops backed by US ally Saudi Arabia signals the emergence of a new front in the wider Middle East war.
• The Houthis have additionally unveiled a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and have begun targeting its ships and territory.

Fresh Yemen clashes kill more than 60: military, medical sources. AFP Published September 5, 2026 Updated September 5, 2026 06: 00pm. Join our Whatsapp Channel. Add Dawn as a trusted source.

After the collapse in July of a 2022 ceasefire, the renewed clashes in Yemen's southwest over control of a gateway to the Red Sea came after Friday saw some of the deadliest fighting in years.

While medical and military sources from the Houthis noted 31 rebel fighters were killed, according to three Yemeni military sources, 26 administration troops were killed during a number of hours of fighting in the country's southwest.

One medical source in the government-held city of Taiz remarked a missile strike additionally killed six civilians travelling by bus and wounded seven others.

For context, a administration official blamed the strike on the bus, travelling between Taiz and the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised administration in Aden, on the Houthis.

In Taiz, a military officer remarked the "coming hours will be decisive" after the Houthis seized positions near the city a day earlier.

For context, the officer continued that reinforcements had been arriving from Aden in response to the Houthi offensive. It seeks to cut off the government-held port city of Mokha, under fire for weeks, and advance towards areas bordering the Bab al-Mandeb strait.

With Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial ships, the Bab al-Mandeb chokepoint has gained importance as a transit route for oil from Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest exporter of crude.

For context, a military official informed AFP on Saturday that three airstrikes by Saudi Arabia, a key backer of the administration in Aden, had targeted positions lately captured by the Houthis in Taiz.

In July, a fragile truce between the Houthis and Yemen's administration fell apart after the rebels welcomed an Iranian plane to the capital Sanaa, setting off a spate of attacks.

Meanwhile, the fighting between the Houthis and administration troops backed by US ally Saudi Arabia signals the emergence of a new front in the wider Middle East war. It broke out in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Notably, the Houthis have additionally unveiled a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and have begun targeting its ships and territory.

Taken together, the developments around fresh Yemen clashes kill more than 60: military, medical sources point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.