Thousands of Houthis Concentrated Along Yemen-Saudi Border – Tribal Sources

Thousands of Yemeni militants, most of whom belong to the Ansar Allah Houthi rebel group, are gathered in the Saada Governorate, along the border with Saudi Arabia, tribal sources have told Sputnik.

SANAA (Sputnik) – The militants are trying to assess the possibility of an adequate response to what they have called an "aggression on the part of Persian Gulf states," according to the sources.

The Houthis claim that the airstrikes that Saudi Arabia is currently conducting along with its Gulf Arab allies in Yemen have led to multiple, predominantly civilian, casualties.

Saudi Arabia, along with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and several other states, started a military offensive against the Houthi rebels at the request of Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi on Wednesday evening.

Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi politburo, told Sputnik that the military operation is a "declaration of war against the Yemeni people." According to al-Bukhaiti, Houthis will use all of the means available to them to launch a counter attack.

Houthi rebels have taken control of vast areas in Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, forcing President Hadi and the country's government to resign in January.

Yemeni medical and security sources told Sputnik on Thursday that over 22 people have been killed and more than 30 were injured as a result of coalition airstrikes conducted in Sanaa. Houthi-run TV channels reported dozens of civilian casualties in the Sanaa strikes.