Arab coalition troops have stormed the airport in Yemen's main port Hodeidah and captured large areas of the compound in battles with Iran-aligned Houthis, a Yemeni military source, the UAE news agency and local residents say.
Wresting the airport from the Houthis would be an important gain for the coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which pledged a swift assault on the city to avoid disrupting aid deliveries to Yemen through the port.
The Western-backed alliance launched the onslaught on Hodeidah on June 12 to try and turn the tables in a long-stalemated proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran that has exacerbated turmoil across the Middle East.
"They have stormed the airport," an anti-Houthi Yemeni military source told Reuters.
"This is the first time we hear the clashes so clearly. We an hear the sound of artillery and machine gun fire," said a resident who requested anonymity. Warplanes had bombarded the airport earlier in the morning, the resident added.
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The UAE state news agency WAM said large swathes of the airport compound had been taken by coalition forces.
The escalation in fighting has wounded and displaced dozens of civilians and hampered humanitarian agencies trying to send vital aid to million of Yemenis via the Red Sea port.
