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Saudi, Blackwater forces killed in Yemeni attacks

Tuesday, 29 December 2015 8:42 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 29 December 2015 8:47 AM ]

A Saudi soldier is seen in Yemen’s southern city of Aden on September 28, 2015. ©AFP

At least two Saudi troops and an unknown number of mercenaries with an infamous US security firm, formerly known as Blackwater, have been killed in Yemeni attacks, the al-Masirah TV says.

The Yemeni army fired rockets at the Asir region in southwestern Saudi Arabia on Monday, killing two troops and destroying their armored vehicles, the television said.

Artillery fire also struck Saudi military outposts in the Jizan region in the kingdom’s southwest, destroying a US-made M1 Abrams tank, it added.

Further in their counterattacks, Yemeni forces launched a rocket attack on Saudi military positions in the Dhubab district of the southwestern Tai’zz province, killing a number of foreign mercenaries, including Blackwater employees.

Last Wednesday, Ansarullah leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi said the activities of Blackwater, which is now known as Academi, in Yemen reveal how the US views such issues as human rights, freedom and democracy.

The counterattacks came in response to Saudi airstrikes on Monday that killed a truck driver on a road linking Yemen's Ma’rib Province to the capital, Sana’a.

Saudi aerial bombardments also targeted residential buildings in Sana’a, killing three civilians and injuring four others.

The kingdom has been waging a military campaign against Yemen since March in a bid to undermine Houthi Ansarullah fighters and bring fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi back to power. More than 7,500 people have been killed and over 14,000 others injured since then.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk