Four experts from the Lebanese Hezbollah group were killed in Arab Coalition airstrikes last week in separate locations east of the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, military sources have confirmed.
Sources close to the Houthi militia indicated that the four experts were two Lebanese and two Iraqi men working with Hezbollah.
The two Lebanese men were Ashraf Nasruddin, who was killed in the Majzar area, north of Marib, and Tayseer al-Majdulani, who was killed in al-Matoon area, southwest of al-Jawf.
The two Iraqi men were identified as Hussein al-Nuhaili and Mohammed Khaled al-Janabi, both killed in or near the mountainous regions of Nihm.
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The sources confirmed that Houthi leadership informed Hezbollah of the experts’ deaths and that they had been buried in Sanaa.
Speaking to Al Arabiya’s sister channel Al Hadath, a spokesperson of the internationally recognized government of Yemen said there has been a marked increase in Hezbollah activities in Yemen following the death of Iranian top commander Qassem Soleimani.
“There has been an increase in Hezbollah’s activities in Yemen following Soleimani’s death. We’re seeing this through Hezbollah al-Ridwan Special Forces sending its fighters and experts and I see this as an escalation by Iran to heighten tensions in Yemen,” said Najeeb Ghallab, the undersecretary of the Yemeni Ministry of Information.
IRGC airforce commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh in front of proxy flags Iran on state TV, Jan 9 - Screengrab from Twitter
The deaths are the latest case in Iran's proxy organizations coordinating across the region.
On Wednesday, sources confirmed to Reuters that Hezbollah's leadership urgently stepped in to fill the void in Iraq following the death of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards - Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani.
Soleimani, who was killed by a US air strike in January, coordinated Iran's proxy organization abroad.
The Houthis have previously held fundraisers for Hezbollah in Yemen amid growing ties.
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