Houthis release footage of seized Saudi army vehicles, troops

Yemeni Muslim Houthi fighters have released recent footage of clashes with the Saudi military at the two countries’ joint border.

The video shows the seizure of Saudi army vehicles by the fighters. It also shows Saudi soldiers fleeing the scene of battles as Houthi fighters open fire on them.

The Saudi Arabian air force launched a deadly offensive against Houthis eight days ago, accusing the Muslim resistance fighters of killing two Saudi soldiers on the border.

While Riyadh says that its offensive targeted Houthi positions on ‘Saudi territory’, the fighters say Yemeni villages, far from the battlefield, were being bombarded.

On several occasions, the Saudi air force has also attacked the areas of al-Malahaid and the border region of Jabal al-Dukhan with white phosphorous bombs, the fighters say.

Their attacks have killed and wounded several people.

The Houthis say they’ve captured an unspecified number of Saudi troops inside the Yemeni territory in response to Saudi attacks on their positions and villages.

They have also posted footage of a man they identified as one of several Saudi soldiers in their custody. The video showed a man in military uniform with facial wounds and an apparent leg injury receiving medical attention. It identified him as Staff Sergeant Ahmad Abdullah al-Omari.

Houthi fighters accuse Riyadh of supporting the Yemeni government in launching attacks against them.

The Yemeni government accuses Houthi fighters of seeking to reinstate the imamate rule, which ended in a 1962 coup. The Houthis, however, say they are defending themselves against religious oppression as well as social, economic and political ‘discrimination’ against them in the country.