Beirut: The Saudi-backed government of Yemen has announced a major military campaign against the Houthi militia, a key Iranian ally, plunging the Middle East even deeper into war.

In a televised speech, Rashad al-Alimi, the leader of the internationally recognised, Saudi-backed government, said that the government was seeking to reclaim all territory it had lost to the Houthis over the past 12 years.

The government and the Houthis have been engaged in fierce battles in recent weeks, after the Iran-allied militia took control of the country’s Red Sea coast, increasing pressure on shipping routes and energy markets unsettled by the US-Israeli war with Iran.

The Houthis and Saudi Arabia, which supports the government financially and militarily, have also attacked each other directly.

Alimi’s announcement appeared to eliminate any hope that a truce would be reached. In his speech, he said that the government’s military operations would continue “until the country is liberated.”

The Houthis also say that they were fighting to liberate Yemen and have dismissed government fighters as Saudi mercenaries. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesperson, said in a statement on Sunday that the group’s fighters would “not stop carrying out further painful operations against the Saudi enemy.”

The two sides have been battling since 2014, when the Houthis took over the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, forcing out the government. Saudi Arabia led a bombing campaign to try to restore the government, contributing to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people from violence, hunger and disease. The Houthis eventually created a de facto state in northern Yemen.

A truce in 2022 brought a fragile peace. But the conflict reignited this year, after the US and Israel attacked Iran in February.

The Saudi government has not publicly acknowledged any role in the new offensive announced by Alimi and did not respond to a request for comment.

The Houthis have accused Saudi Arabia of launching hundreds of airstrikes in their territory in recent weeks, and any major ground operation by the Yemeni government would likely include the Saudis, according to analysts.

Yemen has been devastated by more than a decade of war, and the latest escalation has only compounded its humanitarian crisis. More than 800 people have been killed since the fighting erupted last month, according to the World Health Organisation, while the World Food Program says more than 150,000 people have been displaced.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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