If the Shiite rebels based in the north of Yemen didn't know, they do now. There forces are superiorly inferior to the Yemeni army. An attack by hundreds of rebels supported by captured armoured vehicles against government targets in the embattled Saada City yesterday was a spectacular failure. It is believed that the rebels were aiming to catch the army off guard (the army having recently announced a ceasefire to coincide with Eid) and capture the presidential palace. Instead the rebels lost over 140 men in a major setback for the group. It is believed that as soon as the rebel advance was noticed Yemeni airstrikes were called in and quickly turned the battle. It is surprising that mere days after a Yemeni airforce airstrike killed 87 refugees in an Amran camp that the rebels would attempt to strike without air cover or support. A simple battlefield blunder has cost the rebels a real chance to swing the war in their favour and may lead to them accepting ceasefire terms soon.
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