North Yemen | More than 200 people killed in three-day bombings

Defence Redefined

Published on 01/11/2021 at 14:15

The Saudi-led military alliance involved in the 2015 war in Yemen announced on Sunday that at least 218 Shiite rebels (Houthi) had been killed in airstrikes the past three days, near the strategically important city of Marib, in the north, where hostilities have been raging in recent weeks.

For weeks, the alliance in Riyadh announces almost daily tens to hundreds of deaths in the rebel ranks from airstrikes, yet reports made public cannot be confirmed by independent sources, while the Houthis rarely publish the numbers of their casualties.

“Twenty-four military vehicles were destroyed and more than 218 terrorists” were killed in the 72 bombings in Juba (50 km south of Marib), the alliance said in a statement broadcast by the official Saudi news agency SPA.

Saudi Arabia uses the term “terrorists” when referring to Shiite rebels close to Iran, its main rival in the region. The alliance supports forces that are loyal to the internationally-recognized government and are trying to repel the Houthis.

Shiite rebels have been fighting since February to seize control of the city and the province of Marib, the last out of control in the north of the war-torn country, and are advancing despite their casualties. 

The conflict of more than seven years in the poorest country of the Arabian Peninsula has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people, mostly civilians, and displaced millions more, according to international aid organizations. According to the UN, the worst humanitarian catastrophe in the world has been unfolding in Yemen in recent years.

Source: CNA

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