LIVE BLOG: Saudi and Arab allies bomb Houthi positions in Yemen

Strikes against Houthi-controlled sites have continued throughout the past few hours, as sunset falls across the country.

Saudi-led strikes targeted an army base allied with the Houthis to the south of the capital on Thursday afternoon, as well as a weapons depot just east of Sanaa.

In the south-western town of al-Dhali, an army base controlled by the Houthis fell to armed members of al-Hirak, Yemen's southern secessionist movement that calls for independence for southern Yemen.

As the air campaign continued on Thursday afternoon, there were also reports that up to 20 Houthi fighters and five armed tribesmen were killed during bloody clashes in the central province of al-Bayda.

Yemen's embattled President Mansour Hadi has arrived in Riyadh, according to the official Saudi news agency.

According to a statement posted on the agency's website, Hadi was met at the Riyadh Air Base by Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi Defence Minister, and the head of General Intelligence, Khalid bin Ali al-Hamidan.

There has been intense speculation for several days as to the whereabouts of Hadi, who moved to a safe location after the bombing of the Presidential Palace in Aden, the southern city where he had been staying.

There were reports that he had attempted to travel to Oman, Yemen's neighbour to the north-east, while some suggested that he had headed to Egypt's Sharm al-Sheikh, where Arab foreign ministers are meeting on Thursday.

Hadi's office has yet to confirm the Saudi news agency report that he has now touched down in the capital Riyadh.

The European Union has announced its opposition to the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen, saying in a statement that "military action is not a solution".

Two key EU players, the UK and France, had earlier announced their backing for the military action, saying they hoped it would support Yemen's legitimate government.

Federica Mogherini, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that pursuing military action risked "serious regional consequences".

She also announced that she had been in contact with the Foreign Minister of Oman to discuss "the way forward".

Oman, Iran's nearest neighbour in the Persian Gulf region, is the only Gulf State not to have announced its support for the Saudi-led offensive.

It has not publicly stated any reasons for its decision.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia will lead a ground assault in Yemen once airstrikes have weakened the capabilities of the rebels, Egyptian officials have told Associated Press.

Egypt has said it is willing to co-ordinate with Saudi Arabia on air, ground and navy strikes in what it says is a bid to restore "stability" in Yemen.

Four Egyptian navy ships are already en route to Yemen via the Suez Canal.

However, some have cast doubt on the Egyptian role in the offensive, with Al-Jazeera journalist Ahmed Mansour reporting that the Gulf States failed to inform Egypt about the operation, named Resolute Storm, before it began.

Residents of the Yemeni capital Sanaa began fleeing the city shortly after air strikes began in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Some gathered their belongings in plastic bags which were loaded into cars and vans ahead of a long journey out of a city that has been clogged by traffic jams since the bombing began.

Saudi Arabia says that its strikes so far, which have been carried out with support from over 10 countries, have destroyed most of the Houthi air defences and killed some of the group's leading members.

However, residents of Sanaa say they are expecting further strikes and violence in the city.

Translation: A rainbow appears above Sanaa after a terrifying night - residents of the city are preparing for a second wave of bombing and explosions. God protect his servants and the country.

Yemen’s Ministry of Health reported that 18 civilians have been killed so far and 24 injured since the Saudi Arabia-led coalition began bombing Sanaa early this morning.

In a statement released by President Mahmoud Abbas’s office on Thursday, the president announced that he backs the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.

The statement said that Abbas supported the decision to protect the legitimacy of the Yemeni government and stressed the importance of bringing security and unity to the country.

MEE's latest infographic shows Yemen's deepening divides as the Houthis, government forces and al-Qaeda militants scrap for power and territory.

Behind the latest drama in Yemen lie a host of economic woes. Yemen is the poorest country in the Arab world, and struggles to feed its people. 

Aid agencies are warning that more than half the country’s nearly 26 million people risk a humanitarian disaster.

Saudi Arabia - Yemen's northern neighbour who are leading the bombing campaign against the Houthis - has allegedly cut some financial support after the Houthi rise.

This latest violence could make aid delivery for the vulnerable more difficult. In a statement, UNICEF said that 5,400 children had seen their school examinations interrupted, with many being trapped for hours as fighting between Houthi rebels and government forces raged on the streets outside.

Yemen analyst, Hisham Omeisy, has posted this video of a mile-long queue of cars in downtown Sanaa waiting to buy petrol. 

A number of Syrian opposition forces have come out publicly in support of the Saudi Arabia-led bombing campaign against the Houthis in Yemen.

The Syrian National Coalition, one of the country's most prominent opposition movements, urged the "expansion" of the campaign, calling for the creation of a strong coalition to get rid of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as well.

"The movement led by Saudi Arabia to protect Yemen is a just step and deterrent which paves the way for the formation of a front that will address the plans of the Iranian regime," they said in a statement.

Another group, Faylaq Al-Sham, a coalition of rebel groups, also came out in support of the bombings, attacking the Iranians as 'Zoroastrian'.

"In light of the vicious Zoroastrian attack on our Arab Islamic nation, and with the increase in the egregious Iranian interventions in the region...there was no choice but for our Arab Islamic world to put a stop to this interference and cut the path ahead of the Iranian ambition to expand and occupy of other countries," read a statement released on twitter.

The Saudi bombing "means an end to the expectation and patience of our [Arab Islamic] nation." 

"We in the Levantine Legion...thank Saudi Arabia for its role in guaranteeing the security of the region. We demand an expansion to the deterrent operations and an intensification of efforts to face this cancerous danger in the body of our nation"

Hours after airstrikes hit Sanaa killing 15, including civilians, thousands of supporters of the Houthi movement gathered outside Bab Al-Yemen the gates of Sanaa's old city.

Although the Saudi Arabia-led bombings in Yemen have commanded wide regional support, a number of countries have come out firmly against the operation.

Iran

The Iranians have been the most prominent backers - politically and, allegedly, militarily - of the Houthis in Yemen and attacked the Saudi bombardment and called for an immediate end to the operation.

Syria

The Syrian state news agency SANA described Saudi's actions as "blatant aggression". The Syrian government is a staunch ally of Iran who has provided heavy support to pro-government forces in the country.

Russia

A staunch ally of Iran, Russia has urged the Yemeni factions to come to negotiations.

"We believe it is highly important that all parties to the conflict in Yemen and their foreign allies stop any military actions and abandon any efforts to achieve their goals in a military way. We believe that severe contradictions in Yemen can be settled only through a nationwide dialogue," the Russian Foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Lebanon

A highly divided country, the Lebanese Communist Party has, at least, publicly come out in opposition to both the Saudi intervention and Iran's influence in Yemen. It warned that Yemen is facing a return to "sectarian divisions that could lead to a civil war"

"Whilst all the Gulf States are intervening, the people of Yemen face a huge tragedy...nobody will stand down from this new fragmentary war, which could spread throughout the region."

Oman

The closest country to Iran in the Gulf, it was the only Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member not to join the anti-Houthi coalition. So far they have not officially provided an explanation for their absence.