The Yemeni president replaced the defence minister and the army chief of staff on Thursday, as government forces press a five-month assault on the rebel-held port of Hodeida, state media said.

President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi named Mohammed al-Maqdashi as defence minister to replace Mahmoud al-Subaihi who has been detained by the rebels for years, the government-run Saba news agency reported.

Hadi had not replaced the detained minister since 2014, when the rebels overran the capital Sanaa.

The naming of a replacement comes days after neutral Oman intervened in an attempt to secure Subaihi's release.

Hadi also named Abdullah al-Nakhii as chief of staff.

A week of intense fighting for Hodeida has left hundreds of combatants dead as government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition advance into the rebel-held port city.

Hadi last month fired his prime minister on accusations of corruption.

He named Moueen Abdulmalik Saeed, a former minister of public works with ties to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as the new head of government.

The World Health Organization estimates nearly 10,000 people have been killed since 2015, when Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened after Hadi fled into exile.

Human rights groups say the real death toll could be five times as high.

Related Links
Space War News

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

US-led coalition strikes kill 14 civilians in east Syria: monitor
Beirut (AFP) Nov 3, 2018
At least 14 civilians were killed Saturday in US-led coalition air strikes on the Islamic State group's last holdout in eastern Syria, a monitor said. "Fourteen civilians, including five children under the age of 18, were killed in the coalition air raids on the villages of Hajin, Sousa and Al-Shaafa" in eastern Deir Ezzor province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "The death toll is likely to rise due to the number of seriously wounded," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP ... read more