Sana'a, Feb 22 .- The second-in-command of Yemen's army has been killed by armed rebel forces, military sources told EFE on Wednesday.

Brigadier General Ahmed Seif al-Yafai was killed in a rocket attack launched by the Houthi rebels near the Red Sea city of Mocha.

Yemen plunged into civil war when the predominantly Shiite Houthi rebels ousted the internationally-recognized President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi from the nation's capital, and seat of power, Sana'a.

The ensuing conflict, involving coalition airstrikes led by neigboring Saudi Arabia, has triggered a humanitarian crisis in the Arab country. (EFE)