The Yemeni Armed Forces and allied Popular Committees announced on 12 January that clashes in oil-rich Shabwah province have caused “very large losses” in the ranks of UAE-backed militias.

1- Our forces caused very large losses among UAE mercenaries & ISIS in the Shabwa governorate during past few days.
as the death toll reached more than 515, including leaders , the number of wounded exceeded 850 wounded &more than 200 missing, according to intelligence sources.

— Yahya Sare'e (@Yahya_Saree) January 12, 2022

According to army spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree, more than 515 militants and ISIS fighters, including high-profile commanders, have been killed during the operations. He added that over 850 others have been wounded and more than 200 have gone missing.

Saree added that the Yemeni Armed Forces have launched “dozens of missile strikes” against enemy positions. “Yemeni army soldiers and Popular Committees fighters continue to make sacrifices out of altruism as they confront Daesh elements and UAE mercenaries,” the Yemeni official went on to say.

The announcement comes just one day after the UAE-backed Giants Brigades claimed to have pushed the Yemeni army out of three districts in Shabwah, alleging the UAE had gained control of in the oil-rich southern province.

The reports also claimed that Abu Dhabi had dispatched allied Takfiri militants as well as military equipment to strategic Marib province, bordering Shabwah.

In their announcement, the Giants Brigades said their fighters had advanced into Marib, recapturing most of Harib district.

Meanwhile, on 9 January, Arabic media reports said that the commander of the Giants Third Brigade, Majdi al-Radfani, had died of his injuries after the Yemeni army targeted UAE-sponsored militants in the Bayhan district of Shabwah province.

The report added that more than 130 militants had been killed during battles with Yemeni Armed Forces over the past few days and dozens of others have been wounded.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia and its closest allies invaded neighboring Yemen with the goal of bringing the government of ousted president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi back to power and crushing the popular Ansarallah resistance movement.

The resulting conflict has left hundreds of thousands of Yemenis dead, and displaced millions more. It has also left the country’s infrastructure in shambles and has pushed most of the population to the brink of famine.