ADEN, Yemen, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- A missile attack launched by the Houthi rebels struck a pro-government military base in Yemen's southern province of Dhalea early on Tuesday, a security official told Xinhua.
The local security source said on condition of anonymity that "around 12 soldiers were killed and nearly 20 others injured when Houthi-fired missile hit the 4th Military Brigade in the northern parts of Dhalea."
He said that "a gathering of the pro-government soldiers inside the base was targeted causing a huge explosion in the area."
All the injured soldiers were transferred immediately via medical ambulances to receive treatment in Dhalea's hospitals, he added.
Other sources said that the Houthi attack was launched using "an explosives-laden drone that exploded over the pro-government military base."
There was no immediate comment or claim of responsibility from the Houthi rebels regarding the attack on the pro-government forces in Dhalea.
Last month, a ballistic missile fired by the Houthi rebels struck a military graduation parade of the newly-recruited forces in the southern Yemeni province of Dhalea, killing around 10 soldiers and injuring several others.
In April 2019, the Iran-allied Houthi fighters launched a series of intense armed attacks on the positions of the Yemeni government forces and succeeded in seizing the district of Al Husha in western Dhalea.
The areas in the north and west of Dhalea, 138 km north of Aden, have been witnessing non-stop fighting between government forces and Houthi fighters for about four years.
Yemen has been plagued by a civil war since late 2014 when Houthi militias forced the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi into exile.
