Government troops have mounted a counteroffensive after losing key Red Sea ports to the Shiite militants in September

Yemen has claimed its army has been able to stop an advance by Houthi militants in the southwest of the country.

The hostilities between Yemen and its coalition allies and the Iranian-backed Ansar Allah movement escalated in September when the Shiite group seized the strategically important Red Sea port cities of Mocha and Dhubab as well as Perim Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The Houthis have since also encircled the country’s third-largest city, Taiz, with forces loyal to the internationally recognized government trapped inside.

According to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, which allegedly has close ties to the Saudi royal family, the Houthis mounted an offensive along the border between Lahij and Taiz governorates on Friday.

However, Saudi-backed troops reportedly pushed back the advancing militants, with airstrikes and artillery fire disrupting the Houthis’ supply lines, and staged a…