In Yemen, at least 26 fighters killed in fresh clashes and an air strike as government forces advanced against Shiite Huthi rebels near a key shipping strait.<br/><br/>According to the officials, a week-long assault by government forces and their allies aims to expel the Iran-backed Huthis from Dhubab region, close to the Bab al-Mandab strait linking the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. <br/><br/>A medical official said that 12 bodies of Huthi insurgents were taken early today to a hospital in rebel-held Hodeida. According to a security official, an overnight air strike by a pro-government Arab coalition on a rebel assembly in Zaydiya left another 9 Huthis dead. <br/><br/>A medical official at a hospital in Aden said five pro-government fighters were killed in overnight clashes around Dhubab.