Dozens of Yemeni rebels killed in Hodeida offensive

Dozens of Yemeni rebels have been killed in battles and airstrikes in Hodeida, medics said on Sunday, as pro-government forces advanced in the insurgent-held Red Sea port city.

Fifty-three Houthi rebels were killed and dozens were injured over the past 24 hours, medical sources in the area told AFP.

According to a pro-government military source, clashes intensified in Hodeida city and centred around its university on Saturday and Sunday morning.

Saudi-led coalition warplanes carried out dozens of airstrikes to support pro-government forces in the fighting which began on Thursday evening, according to military officials.

Thirteen pro-government troops were killed, medical sources in Aden and Mokha - where the fighters were transported - told AFP.

The clashes erupted just hours after the government said on Thursday it was ready to restart peace talks with the Houthis.

The offer followed a surprise call by the United States for an end to the Yemen war, including airstrikes by the coalition.

Hodeida port is the entry point for more than 70 percent of imports into the impoverished country, which is teetering on the edge of famine.

After UN-backed peace talks collapsed in September, the coalition announced it was relaunching an assault on Hodeida.

On Tuesday, Yemeni government officials said that the coalition had sent more than 10,000 new troops towards the battleground city.

Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in the war in 2015 to bolster Yemeni President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi after the rebels took over the capital Sanaa. 

According to the World Health Organisation, more 10,000 people have been killed in the conflict since 2015, but some rights groups estimate the toll could be five times higher.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for a halt to violence to pull Yemen back from the "precipice".

Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) said that at least 56,000 people have died in the Yemen war, a figure much higher than the 10,000 figure given by most news agencies.

Yemen has also been plunged into a humanitarian crisis with famine and disease threatening to smother the country.

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