JNN 24 Aug 2015 Sanaa : The Yemeni army and popular forces shot down a Saudi military helicopter with a surface-to-air missile in the province of Jizan, in Southern Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Apache military chopper exploded after it was hit by the Yemeni forces’ missile in Jizan, the Arabic-language Al-Masyra TV reported.

The Saudi coalition named the two pilots as Ali Bin Mohammed al-Qarni and Nasser bin Mohammed al-Harthy.

The Yemeni forces’ attack came in retaliation for the Saudi-led continued airstrikes on Yemen’s residential areas.

Saudi Arabia has been striking Yemen for 149 days now to restore power to fugitive president Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh. The Saudi-led aggression has so far killed at least 5,434 Yemenis, including hundreds of women and children.

Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by Ansarullah revolutionaries of the Houthi movement.

Despite Riyadh’s claims that it is bombing the positions of the Ansarullah fighters, Saudi warplanes are flattening residential areas and civilian infrastructures.