ADEN, Yemen, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's government forces announced on Thursday the downing of a reconnaissance Houthi drone in the southwestern province of Taiz.
According to the Defense Ministry's website, the army forces shot down an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft belonging to the Houthi group over areas controlled by the government forces in Taiz.
The Houthi drone was trying to monitor the military sites near the air defense camp in the northwest of Taiz, the ministry's website said.
"Examination of the aircraft's wreckage showed it was an Iran-made drone," it added.
A similar Houthi drone was downed in Durayhmi district in the south of the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah on Monday.
The Iran-allied Houthi rebels intensified their attacks using numerous explosives-laden drones against pro-government forces in Yemen and vital institutions deep inside Saudi Arabia.
In January, at least six soldiers loyal to the internationally-backed Yemeni government were killed and several high-ranking military commanders injured in a strike launched by a Houthi drone against a military parade in Lahj in southern Yemen.
Yemen has been mired into a civil war since late 2014, when Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces, including Sanaa.
The civil war has killed more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, displaced 3 million others, and pushed the impoverished Arab country to the brink of famine.
