ADEN — Dozens of Yemeni Houthi fighters clashed with local militiamen in the central Aden district of Crater on Wednesday and mosques broadcast calls for jihad (holy war) to combat the Houthi forces trying to take over the southern Yemeni port city, residents said. The Houthis, who are allied to soldiers loyal to ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh, advanced into Crater on Wednesday morning with a tank and two armored vehicles, one resident said. Mosques in Crater called on the population to wage holy war against the Houthis, their loudspeakers, usually reserved for sermons and the call to prayer, broadcasting: “God is the greatest! Rise for jihad!“ The battle in the old center of Aden came a day after fighters from the city said they had pushed the Houthis and allied troops from positions in northern Aden neighborhoods, which they said cut Houthi supply lines into the center. One fighter, Yasser Mahmoud, said the Houthis had been pushed from the Dar Saad neighborhood at the northern approach to Aden. He said 22 Houthi fighters were killed when a tank and an armored vehicle were destroyed. — Reuters
