U.S carried out more than 80 strikes in Yemen: Pentagon

By Safvan Allahverdi

WASHINGTON

U.S. forces have carried out more than 80 strikes in Yemen since March, the Pentagon said Monday.

Speaking at a press conference, spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said they conducted a strike against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) terror group on April 18th in Maghrib governorate, and another on the 23rd in Shabwah governorate.

"Us forces will continue conducting a series of sustained operations against the AQAP to limit AQAP's ability to hold territory seized from the legitimate government of Yemen," Davis added.

The U.S. has recently stepped up drone strikes on Al-Qaeda positions in Yemen’s Shabwah, Abyan and Al-Bayda provinces.

Al-Qaeda is said to be in control of the city of Mukalla, regional capital of the southern Hadhramaut governorate, along with parts of Shabwah and Abyan.

In August of last year, the Yemeni government claimed to have recaptured Abyan from the terrorist organization.

Yemen has remained in a state of chaos since 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran capital Sanaa and other parts of the country, forcing members of Yemen’s Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

In March of 2015, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive military campaign in Yemen aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and restoring the country’s internationally-recognized government.

Last year, Yemen’s government and the Houthi rebels entered into UN-sponsored peace talks in Kuwait in an effort to resolve the conflict, in which more than 10,000 people have been killed, according to UN figures.