One of the key commanders of Yemen’s Houthi movement, Ansar Allah, Farak Mohsen al-Assar, has been killed in clashes with government forces in the village of Kahboub in southwestern Yemen, according to Arab media.
Al-Assar was killed in fighting near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait along with six of his companions, the reports said. Yemeni officials and a government-affiliated military media centre also confirmed his death, although the circumstances were not immediately disclosed.
According to Arab media reports cited in the original account, al-Assar had commanded Houthi military operations aimed at gaining control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in recent weeks.
He was reportedly a close associate of Ansar Allah leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, who personally appointed him to command the group’s field forces.
Sources said al-Assar’s death would create a significant gap in the Houthi brigades directing military operations around Bab el-Mandeb.
Recent fighting has intensified around the Kahboub front, a strategically important mountainous area overlooking the strait. Government forces and the Houthis have engaged in heavy clashes in the area in recent days.
By Tamilla Hasanova
