Houthi rebels threaten more drone attacks

Rebels also said they are developing an arsenal of locally-manufactured drones

Soldiers inspect the scene of a Houthi drone attack on Yemeni government military parade at the Al Anad air base, Lahaj province. Reuters

Houthi rebels on Sunday threatened to launch more drone attacks against government forces in Yemen only three days after a drone strike targeted a government military parade, killing several people.

The comments by Houthi spokesperson Yahya Serea suggests that rebels are not committed to securing a political solution to the conflict that has killed thousands of people since 2015.

It also strokes tensions with government forces and the Arab-led coalition at a time when international powers are trying to secure an agreement between warring parties.

Mr Sarea said that the drone attack on the Al Anad military base in Lahaj province on Thursday was a "legitimate operation against aggression,” and noted that rebels are building an arsenal of locally manufactured drones.

Soon there will be enough in the strategic stockpile to launch more than one drone operation in multiple battle fronts at the same time," Mr Sarea told reporters in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa.

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The Houthis said in November they were halting drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and their Yemeni allies.

Yemen's intelligence chief, Brigadier General Saleh Tammah, died on Sunday, just three days after being injured in the Houthi drone attack.

The attack, which killed seven and wounded at least 12 people including top commanders, came a month after the warring sides agreed at talks in Sweden on a truce in the rebel-held port of Hodeidah, a key aid gateway for the country where some 14 million are on the brink of famine.

The United States and United Nations have voiced alarm over the escalation of violence in Yemen and urged restraint after the drone attack.

UN envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths said separately that he was "alarmed" by the drone attack, which came as he was hoping for further progress in negotiating an end to the war.

A Saudi-led military coalition said on Friday it destroyed a Houthi communication and control centre used to direct drones.