Clashes between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and government forces have killed 81 combatants since Thursday, according to a tally of figures from two military officials and medical sources in rebel-held territory. A military official on the Red Sea coast reported 24 of his men killed, while another in the inland Taiz area said 15 had been killed there. At least 42 Houthi militants were also killed, according to medical sources in areas under their control. Deadly clashes erupted in Yemen on Thursday, after Houthi forces began a ground assault accompanied by rocket and drone attacks near coastal areas in the Red Sea and around the Taiz region. Military government sources told AFP the rebels were attempting to cut off the key port city of Mokha, under fire for weeks, from other government areas, and advance towards areas bordering the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait. Yemen, embroiled in more than a decade of civil conflict, in July became the latest country to be drawn into the Middle East war as the Houthis upended a 2022 truce with the Saudi-backed government.