Story highlights Saudi general says more than 1,200 airstrikes since campaign began March 26

Three Saudis were killed in attack on border position, source tells CNN

(CNN) More than 500 Houthi rebels have been killed since the start of Saudi-led military operations against Yemeni Shia fighters, a Saudi Defense Ministry official said Saturday, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

A Saudi general said Saturday the nine-nation coalition has undertaken 1,200 airstrikes since they began on March 26.

Gen. Ahmed Asiri added that the raids aim to keep the rebels from moving toward southern Yemen, according to the SPA.

Clashes took place Friday near the Saudi-Yemeni border, in the Najran region. Saudi forces responded to mortar rounds fired by Houthis on a Saudi border site.

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Three Saudi military officers were killed and two others were wounded in the shelling, a defense official said, according to SPA.

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