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Southern Yemen offensive
Part of the aftermath of the 2014–15 Yemeni coup d'état and the Yemeni Crisis
Date 22 March 2015 - present Location Yemen Result Ongoing Taiz, Mocha, and Lahij fall to the Houthis Houthis continue offensive southward toward Aden General al-Subaihi captured Gulf Cooperation Council intervenes in Yemen
Belligerents
Houthi government Houthi fighters Security Forces (pro-Saleh)	Hadi government Security Forces (pro-Hadi) Popular Committees Foreign intervention  Saudi Arabia (leader)  Bahrain  Egypt  Jordan  Kuwait  Morocco  Sudan  United Arab Emirates
Commanders and leaders
Mohammed Ali al-Houthi Abdul-Malik al-Houthi Ali al-Shami Ali Abdullah Saleh	Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi Mahmoud al-Subaihi  (POW) Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani King Salman
Strength
Unknown	100 warplanes

The southern Yemen offensive is an ongoing campaign against the internationally recognised Yemeni government of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi in Aden, which is being carried out by Houthi forces and forces loyal to the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

On 22 March 2015, the offensive began with fighting in the Taiz Governorate. By 25 March, Taiz, Mocha, and Lahij fell to the Houthis and they reached the outskirts of Aden, the seat of power for Hadi's government. On 25 March, Hadi fled the country. At the same day, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched military operations by using airstrike to restore former Yemeni government and the United States provided intelligence and logistical support for the campaign.

Background

On January 2015, Houthi forces seized the power in Yemen's capital, Sana'a, which led to resignation of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and his ministers. On 21 February 2015, one month after Houthi militants confined Hadi to his residence in Sana'a, He slipped out of the capital and traveled to Aden, the old capital of South Yemen. In a televised address from his hometown, he declared that the Houthi takeover was illegitimate and indicated he remained the constitutional president of Yemen.

After the 2015 Sana'a mosque bombings on 20 March 2015, in a televised speech, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthis, said his group's decision to mobilize for war was "imperative" under current circumstances and that Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and its affiliates—among whom he counts Hadi—would be targeted, as opposed to southern Yemen and its citizens. President Hadi fled to Aden for the second time since February and declared there to be Yemen's temporary capital after Houthi-held TV station announced that the militants had seized an air base used by U.S. while Sana'a remained under Houthi control.

Offensive

22 March

The offensive began with fighting in the Taiz Governorate. Three hundred Houthi fighters took control of the Taiz military airport with the help of military loyal to former President Saleh, while in Aden, loyal forces of President Hadi prepared a line of defense in the north of the city. Warplanes flown by Houthi-aligned pilots flew over the presidential compound in Aden. In the province of Ma'rib, six members of Sunni tribes were killed during fights against Houthi fighters. Houthi forces seized Taiz without resistance, although Houthi gunmen reportedly fired into the air to disperse protests against their takeover. One demonstrator was killed and five more were injured. Meanwhile, Hadi reiterated in a speech that he was the legitimate president of Yemen and declared, "We will restore security to the country and hoist the flag of Yemen in Sana'a, instead of the Iranian flag."

23 March

Houthi forces advanced towards the strategic Bab Al Mandab strait, a vital corridor through which much of the world’s maritime trade passes.

24 March

Houthi forces seized administrative buildings in Ad Dali' and were advancing in the city during heavy fighting while in the Lahij Governorate, fighting with heavy weapons took place and in Al Bayda' Governorate, fighting broke out between Houthi fighters and Sunni tribesmen. In Taiz, five demonstrators were killed by the Houthis and 80 were injured during protest against their presence in the city while in the city of Al Turba, 80 km south-west of Taiz, three protesters were killed and 12 injured while attacking a Houthis position. The Houthi advance continued in the southwest, with fighters from the group reportedly entering the port of Mocha. However, Houthi fighters were swiftly dislodged from Ad Dali' and Kirsh by Hadi-loyal forces. In response to rumours that Saudi Arabia could intervene in Yemen, Houthi commander Ali al-Shami boasted that his forces would invade the larger kingdom and not stop at Mecca, but rather Riyadh.

25 March

On the morning the Houthis seized Al Anad Air Base, which had recently been abandoned by United States special forces troops, 60 kilometers (35 miles) away from Aden. Defence Minister Mahmoud al-Subaihi, one of Hadi's top lieutenants, was captured by the Houthis in Al Houta and transferred to Sana'a. In Egypt, the Yemeni foreign minister called for an Arab military intervention against the Houthis.

In Aden, military officials said militias and military units loyal to Hadi had "fragmented," speeding the rebel advance. They said the rebels were fighting Hadi's troops on five different fronts. Aden International Airport suspended all flights.

During the afternoon, shots were reported in the center of Aden in an army base, as civilians attempted to seize weapons. Five people were killed and 12 were wounded. Houthi fighters advanced to Dar Saad, a small town, 20 km north of Aden. In the same day, Army units loyal to Saleh seized Aden's airport and an nearby airbase after clashes against forces loyal to President Hadi.

According to The Associated Press, five Yemeni officials claimed that Hadi left his palace and fled to an unknown location. However, according to Reuters, his chief of national security denied this issue. According to NBC News, the country's defense minister, general Mahmoud al-Subaihi, was detained.

26 March

Hadi loyalists counterattacked as a military intervention got underway. Artillery shelled Al Anad Air Base, forcing some of its Houthi occupants to flee the area. Saudi airstrikes also hit Al Anad.

After his rumoured escape from Aden by boat the previous day, Hadi resurfaced in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, where he arrived by plane and was met by Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud.

Military intervention

Saudi Arabia led a military intervention by 10 countries against the Houthis that started in the evening of 25 March and continued overnight into 26 March, bombing positions throughout Sana'a. In a joint statement, the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (with the exception of Oman) said they decided to intervene against the Houthis in Yemen at the request of Hadi's government. King Salman of Saudi Arabia declared the Royal Saudi Air Force to be in full control of Yemeni airspace within hours of the operation beginning. The airstrikes were aimed at hindering the houthis's advance toward Mansur Hadi's stronghold in Southern Yemen.

According to Reuters, planes from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain are also taking part in the operation. Iran condemned Saudi-led airstrikes and urged immediate end attacks on Yemen.

References

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• Military history of Yemen
• Yemeni Crisis (2011–present)
• 2015 in Yemen
• Battles involving Yemen
• Conflicts in 2015