SANAA - A senior Yemeni government forces commander and several escorts were killed on Saturday in a Houthi drone strike in Yemen's northern Marib province, a military source told Xinhua.

Khaled bin Dowaid Muthanna, chief of staff of the southern front in Marib, together with a few escorts of his, was killed when a drone targeted a military site in the Al-Falihah area, southern Marib, the source in the government forces said.

Some other escorts were injured in the surprise attack that occurred despite no ongoing clashes between government forces and the Houthis in the area, the source added.

Separately, four Houthis members were killed and several others injured on Saturday in clashes with government forces in the northern province of Taiz, Yemeni government-run "September 26" news website reported.

The website said the government forces repelled an infiltration attempt by the Houthis in Karom and Sawda hills in the Al-Karifat front, east of Taiz city.

The Houthis have not commented on either incident.

Yemen has remained in a fragile state of calm since the collapse of a UN-brokered truce at the end of 2022, with both sides failing to agree on its renewal or expansion.

The conflict, which began in late 2014, has killed hundreds of thousands and pushed millions to the brink of famine, according to UN estimates.