BBC reports from Yemen front line as government forces battle Houthis
The BBC gained rare access to Yemen's conflict zone, travelling with government forces from Taiz to the front line where Houthi-held territory meets no man's land. The war has escalated after Houthi fighters seized a key Red Sea shipping chokepoint earlier this month.
In a rare instance of access to Yemen's conflict zone, a BBC crew travelled with Saudi-backed pro-government forces from the city of Taiz, passing through multiple checkpoints to reach the front line where Houthi-controlled territory ends and no man's land begins.
Government forces are working to push back Houthi fighters, who advanced rapidly down Yemen's Red Sea coast earlier this month and seized control of a key shipping chokepoint. That move has further escalated the country's long-running civil war.
On the front line
While at the front line in south-western Yemen, a soldier accompanying the BBC crew said the sound of a drone overhead usually signals that an attack will follow. According to senior international investigations correspondent Nawal Al-Maghafi, roughly ten minutes after the crew had driven away from the area, loud thuds from strikes could be heard.
The report offers a rare on-the-ground look at a conflict that has intensified following the Houthi advance along the Red Sea coastline.
