Around 15,000 Saudi-backed fighters amass near Yemen border: Yemen official

A Yemeni military official from the internationally recognised government told AFP Friday that around 15,000 Saudi-backed Yemeni fighters had amassed in strategic areas bordering Saudi Arabia since separatists seized swathes of territory last month but they were not ordered to advance.

All the areas where they were deployed are located at the edges of territory seized in recent weeks by the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council separatist group.

"We have not received military instructions to move towards the two provinces," the official said, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.