After claiming to down Saudi coalition plane, Houthis say they're holding Sudanese pilot

The Houthis' comment comes on the heels of another coalition incident in which US forces carried out a rescue mission for two Saudi pilots after their fighter jet went down over the Red Sea Friday. (AFP/File)

http://www.aa.com.tr/en/news/485057--yemens-houthis-claim-to-down-plane-capture-sudanese-pilotHouthi sources have claimed to have shot down a fighter jet over Yemen and captured its Sudanese pilot.

"Anti-rocket defense systems http://www.albawaba.com/news/houthis-shoot-down-shot down a plane in northern Sanaa and captured its Sudanese pilot," one of the sources told The Anadolu Agency on Saturday.

The claim could not be verified.

There was no comment from either Sudan or the Saudi-led Arab coalition, which has been striking Houthi positions in Yemen since Wednesday.

On Friday, U.S. forces rescued two Saudi pilots after their fighter jet crashed over Yemen.

Fractious Yemen has been beset by http://www.albawaba.com/slideshow/entire-countrys-government-collapsed-last-week-and-it-almost-went-unnoticed-655044turmoil since last September, when Shiite militants overran capital Sanaa, from which they have sought to extend their influence to other parts of the country as well.

US forces rescue 2 Saudi pilots in Yemen offensive

U.S. forces have rescued two Saudi pilots after their F-15S fighter crashed during an air mission over Yemen.

"The F-15S suffered a technical difficulty over the Red Sea late Friday," a source in the Saudi Defense Ministry was quoted as saying by the official SPA news agency on Saturday.

"The two pilots have been rescued in cooperation with the U.S. side and they are well and in high spirit," the source added.

Saudi Arabia and several Arab allies launched a military offensive, including airstrikes, against the Shiite Houthi group in Yemen.

Riyadh said the strikes were in response to appeals by embattled Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi to "save the people [of Yemen] from the Houthi militias."

Fractious Yemen has been beset by turmoil since last September, when Shiite militants overran capital Sanaa, from which they have sought to extend their influence to other parts of the country as well.

Some Gulf countries accuse Shiite Iran of supporting Yemen's Houthi insurgency.

After claiming to down Saudi coalition plane, Houthis say they're holding Sudanese pilot

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After claiming to down Saudi coalition plane, Houthis say they're holding Sudanese pilot