Lahj (South24) 

---

The Southern Armed Forces announced today that they had thwarted an attack by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia on the Karsh border front, between the governorates of Taiz and Lahj, north of the capital, Aden.

The official Deraa Aljanoob (Southern Shield) website released a statement regarding the attack, which took place at dawn today against positions held by Southern forces in Jabal Al-Duwari. The statement announced that five Southern soldiers had been killed repelling the attack.

“Our forces responded courageously and decisively to the attack, inflicting heavy losses on the Houthis,” the statement added.

According to a field military source who spoke to South24 Center, at least 15 Houthi fighters were killed and wounded during the failed attack attempt. The Houthis have not yet officially announced their losses.

According to another military source, an estimated 12 Southern soldiers were also injured during the clashes, which lasted for hours. A Southern Armed Forces battalion commander was also among the dead.

On Sunday, a South24 field correspondent in Al-Dhalea Governorate reported that two soldiers from the Southern forces had been killed in two separate Houthi attacks at the front lines on the governorate’s northwestern border.

This military escalation by the Houthis coincides with a recent major escalation in its attacks against American ships and forces.

Yesterday, during a meeting with European Union ambassadors in Aden, the President of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and member of the Presidential Leadership Council, Aidrous Al-Zubaidi, said that halting the Houthi escalation on land and at sea is a basic condition for any political process.

In a separate meeting yesterday, Al-Zubaidi discussed with the Minister of Defense, Lieutenant General Mohsen Al-Daeri, the situation on the fronts in light of the Houthi escalation, as detailed by the STC's official website.