GCPEA News
Saudi-led air raids ‘kill at least 11 civilians’ in Yemen’s Sanaa
Al Jazeera, April 6, 2019
Air raids by a Saudi-UAE-led coalition in a residential area in Yemen’s Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, have killed at least 11 civilians, including children, according to local officials.
Youssef al-Hadrii, a spokesman for the rebel-controlled health ministry, was quoted by DPA news agency as saying that the attack on Sunday left more than 39 people wounded.
He said most of the victims were students killed in the bombing of houses and a school.
Citing local medical sources, The Associated Press news agency put the number of those killed at 13, including seven children. More than 100 were wounded, it added.
“Everyone was hysterical, some were crying and shouting in panic,” said Fatehiya Kahlani, principal of Al Raei school. “The situation was horrible as the school population is 2,100.
“Some girl students were killed and others were wounded and are in a hospital as a result of the missile strike. The school building was destroyed too.”
“‘We suddenly heard a fighter jet while we were at school. We then heard the first strike. We remained calm. Then came the second strike and then the third, which was the strongest of them all,” said Ali Ahmed, a wounded student.
“The building was damaged and we were injured by broken glass. As the fourth air strike came in, we panicked and ran home.”
The Saudi-UAE-led alliance fighting the Houthis said its jets had struck a military camp in the Sanaa suburb of Sawan, according to DPA. But the coalition did not provide casualty figures.
The state-run news agency in Aden, aligned with the coalition-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, said a warehouse used by the Houthis to store weapons was targeted.
The latest conflict in Yemen began with the 2014 takeover of Sanaa by Houthi rebels, who toppled Hadi’s government.
Air raids by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have hit schools, hospitals and wedding parties, killing thousands of Yemeni civilians. The Houthis have fired long-range missiles into Saudi Arabia and targeted vessels in the Red Sea.
The fighting in the Arab world’s poorest country has killed thousands of civilians, left millions suffering from food and medical shortages, and pushed the country to the brink of famine.
UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock has said about 80 percent of Yemen’s population – 24 million people – needs humanitarian assistance, including nearly 10 million “just a step away from famine” and nearly 240,000 “facing catastrophic levels of hunger”.
