ADEN – Yemen's government forces launched a military operation against Houthi positions on several front lines on Saturday, the military said, widening a confrontation that has intensified in recent days after years of relative calm.

Government military spokesperson Majid al-Nuzaili said in a televised statement that the operation was launched in response to Houthi attacks in Marib and Hadramout, which killed and wounded government soldiers and civilians.

Al-Nuzaili said government forces targeted Houthi "positions and capabilities" across several fronts, without specifying where the strikes took place or providing details on casualties or damage.

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He said the operation demonstrated coordinated action across the military's different fronts, warning that government forces would respond to further Houthi attacks with "necessary and decisive military measures."

There was no immediate comment from the Houthis on the government military operation.

The government move marks the latest escalation after the Houthis launched successive waves of ballistic missile and drone attacks against government forces in Marib and neighboring Hadramout on Thursday and Friday, leaving soldiers and civilians killed or wounded.

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Marib, a province rich in oil and natural gas, was one of the most fiercely contested areas during Yemen's civil war. It remains a key stronghold of the internationally recognized government.

Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the Yemeni government.

A UN-brokered truce took effect in April 2022, and expired in October that year without a formal extension, but a fragile de facto ceasefire had largely held since then, despite sporadic clashes along several front lines.