Yemen rebel attack: Loyalist soldiers killed, captured

Dubai: Some 200 pro-government fighters were killed in Yemen and more than 1,000 taken prisoner in an August offensive near the Saudi border by the Iran-backed Huthi rebels, a loyalist source and the rebels said Sunday.
The Huthis, who are fighting a Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen’s long-running conflict, had claimed a mass capture of Saudi forces in the offensive, but a press conference on Sunday was short on proof.
The three-day “large-scale” operation was launched on August 25, Huthi spokesman Yahya Saree said, showing footage purportedly of the attack near the southern Saudi region of Najran.
The Yemeni government source confirmed to AFP that some 200 soldiers were killed in the attack.
The Huthis said more than 200 pro-government fighters were killed in dozens of missile and drone strikes.
“Over 2,000 fighters were taken prisoner,” the Huthi spokesman added, saying most of them were Yemeni but that they also included other prisoners, without elaborating.