SANA’A (Dispatches) – Yemeni forces led by Ansarullah said on Wednesday they had repelled a Saudi mercenary assault in the country’s northern provinces, inflicting heavy casualties on the Saudi-backed militias as clashes intensify across multiple frontlines.
According to Al-Masirah TV, the Yemeni forces targeted Saudi mercenary positions in Al-Jawf province with artillery and drone strikes, killing and wounding dozens of the Saudi-paid militias. The report said the mercenaries had attempted to advance on Ansarullah-controlled areas but were forced to retreat after suffering significant losses.
Ansarullah military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree confirmed the operation in a televised statement, saying the Yemeni forces had successfully defended their positions against “aggressive movements by Saudi mercenaries and their coalition backers.”
“Our heroic forces are fully prepared to confront any escalation by the Saudi-led coalition and its mercenaries,” Saree said. “The Yemeni people will not surrender their sovereignty to foreign aggressors.”
The Ansarullah statement came as Yemen’s naval forces separately announced that they had killed four Saudi mercenaries in recent clashes. 
The escalation on Wednesday follows weeks of intensified fighting, with Ansarullah forces claiming multiple drone and missile strikes on Saudi territory in recent weeks, including a successful attack on Jizan province on Monday. The group has also announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia since July.
Ansarullah, which has administered the capital Sana’a and large parts of the country since 2014, has repeatedly accused Saudi Arabia of prolonging Yemen’s devastating war by funding and arming mercenary militias. The group says the Saudi-led coalition’s blockade and airstrikes have killed tens of thousands of civilians and destroyed the country’s infrastructure.
The latest clashes come as UN peace efforts remain stalled. Ansarullah has insisted on the full reopening of Sanaa International Airport and the Hudaydah port as prerequisites for any renewed negotiations – demands that Saudi-backed authorities have rejected.
Yemen’s humanitarian crisis continues to worsen, with over 21 million people – two-thirds of the population – in need of aid. The country remains divided, with Ansarullah controlling the north while Saudi mercenaries hold much of the south and east, including the interim capital Aden.