Yemen’s internationally recognised government and the Iran-backed Houthis are engaged in a fierce struggle for the Taiz governorate, a key strategic area in the southwest of the country.
asserted
government → recognise → country
Rashad al-Alimi, chief of the Saudi Arabia-backed Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), announced on Sunday the start of a major offensive against the Houthis to regain lost territory.
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Alimi → back → territory
It is expected that this will result in more battles around Taiz, already the site of some of the most recent fighting.
asserted
this → expect → fighting
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Observers and analysts say that the Houthis are trying to consolidate their gains after seizing much of Yemen’s Red Sea coast last month.
uncertain
Houthis → spend → coast
For the government, the battle for Taiz represents a strategic and existential struggle for control of the country.
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battle → represent → country
Here’s what we know.
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we → ’ → what
The flat western coastal region sits on the Red Sea and includes the port city of Mocha and the strategically important Bab al-Mandeb strait.
asserted
region → sit → Mocha
These coastal regions were captured by the Houthis in a surprise and lightning campaign in early September, raising fears the group could choke off international shipping through the strait.
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group → capture → strait
Much of the governorate lies within Yemen’s highlands and remains contested between the two sides.
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Much → lie → sides
The region’s capital, Taiz City, is nestled between a number of mountains and is under government control.
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capital → nestle → control
The governorate sits between Yemen’s Houthi-controlled north and the government-held south.
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governorate → sit → north
The Houthi advance threatens to isolate government forces from Aden, the southern coastal town where key state institutions are based.
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institutions → threaten → Aden
Ibrahim Jalal, a senior researcher and policy adviser, told Al Jazeera that Taiz is a city of huge social, political, economic and military importance for the whole of Yemen.
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Taiz → tell → Yemen
“The Houthi attempt to isolate and constrict the city seeks to secure their coastal Red Sea gains up to Bab al-Mandeb, as well as double down on pressure on Lahij, Aden and much of the south,” said Jalal.
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Jalal → isolate → south
“The Houthis seek to expand their territorial control at the moment along the former boundaries of northern Yemen, or to say, that they want to remove all little pockets of resistance to consolidate control.
asserted
they → seek → control
”
Taiz has been one of the most heavily contested cities in the war, beginning shortly after Houthi forces captured the capital Sanaa in September 2014.
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forces → contest → September
Thousands of civilians have been killed in a devastating Houthi siege and assault on the city, with government forces driving back repeated assaults between 2015 and 2022.
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forces → kill → 2015
Fighting has been focused on Jabal Han, a mountain overlooking Taiz from the west, as well as a key road into the city.
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Fighting → focus → city
Control over this mountain would allow the Houthis to attack people and supplies entering Taiz City from the southwest, Saeed Thabet, head of Al Jazeera’s bureau in Yemen, said.
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Thabet → allow → Yemen
Who has the upper hand?
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Who → have → hand
There has been no clear winner in the battle for Taiz so far, which observers have described as a stalemate.
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observers → describe → stalemate
Al Jazeera’s Mohammed al-Qadi, reporting from the city, said government forces have launched dozens of air strikes on Houthi bases and positions across Taiz in recent days.
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forces → report → days
Houthi fighters are trying to advance under cover of intense artillery, tank, mortar and Katyusha rocket fire into the city.
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fighters → try → city
Artillery fire could be heard around Taiz as residents appealed to be evacuated, Al Jazeera’s Maha Ali, reporting from Taiz City, said on Sunday.
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Ali → hear → Sunday
On that day, local authorities reported that a shell had hit a residential area in Dhubab, killing a 14-day-old infant.
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shell → report → infant
Other attacks have wounded civilians.
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attacks → wound → civilians
Government forces are also shelling Houthi forces positioned around the city.
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forces → shell → city
Face-to-face fighting has now reached the countryside on the outskirts of Taiz City.
asserted
fighting → reach → City
Residents are fighting on their own initiative against Houthi attempts to infiltrate villages and mountain areas around Taiz, a local source said.
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source → fight → Taiz
The heaviest fighting is taking place at the western axis of the city, where government forces have mounted a fierce defence at Jabal Han.
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forces → take → Han
On Sunday, Yemen’s government forces announced gains against the Houthis, saying they had captured several areas, including a fort in Samaa.
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they → announce → Samaa
The military command in Taiz also claimed its forces had repelled Houthi attacks on Jabal Han, Hazran and other points west of Taiz City.
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forces → claim → City
Yemeni military spokesman Majed al-Nuzaili said government forces had carried out dozens of operations using aircraft, drones, artillery, missiles and snipers, resulting in hundreds of Houthi casualties.
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forces → say → casualties
Al Jazeera could not verify these claims.
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Jazeera → verify → claims
In early September, the Houthis managed to expand their control over Yemen’s Red Sea coast with unexpected speed and limited resistance.
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Houthis → manage → speed
However, they have faced much fiercer fighting from government forces in Taiz.
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they → face → Taiz
Al Jazeera’s Yasser Hassan reports that tribesmen took part in Sunday’s capture of the Samaa Fort.
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tribesmen → report → Fort
How are civilians in Taiz being impacted?
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civilians → impact → Taiz
The humanitarian cost of the renewed fighting in Taiz has already manifested in a refugee crisis with limited access to humanitarian goods and services.
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cost → renew → goods
Since fighting escalated in early September, nearly 200,000 people have been displaced in Yemen, most of them from Taiz governorate, according to Yemen’s Executive Unit for IDP Camps Management.
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people → escalate → Management
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
