Saudi-led air strikes kill at least 10 people in Yemen

The developments mark the biggest military setback in over three months of fighting in the south for the Houthis, who control the capital Sana’a and much of northern Yemen.

The combat looks set to simmer despite a deal reached by world powers and Iran over its disputed nuclear program on Tuesday.

It comes a day after they regained control of the worldwide airport.

Hadi was personally supervising “Operation Golden Arrow for the Liberation of Aden”, said his chief of staff, Mohammed Marem.

Resistance forces are eyeing the Houthi-controlled Al-Anad air base in the southern Lahj province, 60 kilometers (35 miles) north of Aden, a senior member of the southern Al-Hirak movement told Asharq Al-Awsat.

They also advanced in Aden’s Crater downtown district, where a presidential palace is located, amid heavy fighting, he added.

On the ground, security officials said clashes continued between the Houthis and their rivals in the cities of Aden and Taiz.

Retaking the airport of Aden is the first significant achievement for pro-Hadi fighters since the embattled president fled the port city late March due to an all-out rebel offensive.

“After the recapture of Khormaksar, there was a collapse in the ranks of the Huthis and their allies”, renegade troops loyal to Hadi’s predecessor Ali Abdullah Saleh, Ahmadi said.

The Saudi-led campaign of air strikes has done little to reverse the Houthi group’s advantage in the city and in battle lines stretching across Yemen’s south.

Footage posted online show pro-Hadi fighters in military vehicles roaming the streets of Aden on Tuesday.

The surveillance-camera footage appears to undercut earlier claims by the military that the officer, Col. Israel Shomer, a brigade commander, opened fire on July 3 because his life was in danger.

Meanwhile, rebel leaders said they hoped the truce would hold, while expressing doubts over the Saudi commitment.

It has also called for talks to end the crisis.

But coalition spokesman Assiri said Hadi’s government did not ask for a pause, Huthis had not committed to it and there was no “mechanism to monitor” and prevent violations.

As millions face “terrifying” violence, extreme hunger and little medical aid in Yemen, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator today expressed deep concern over the “catastrophic” situation, and renewed his appeal for an “immediate and unconditional humanitarian pause”.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that more than 21 million people in need of humanitarian aid in Yemen – 80 per cent of the population and millions of people one step away from starvation.