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Saudi-led airstrikes kill 20 Houthi fighters in Yemen port city

Xinhua, July 25, 2016 Adjust font size:

Saudi-led coalition warplanes killed at least 20 fighters from Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi rebels on Sunday in the Yemeni port city of Mocha, security officials and residents said.

The airstrikes targeted a convoy of three military vehicles carrying Houthi fighters deployed along the battle fronts in the Red Sea port city of Mocha, officials said.

While other air raids hit a warehouse, few miles away in the outskirts of the city, "which was used for storing weapons and fuel as a number of the militants were inside," one of the officials said on condition of anonymity.

Residents said many dead bodies were scattered in the road after their vehicles were destroyed, burned and torn apart, among them were several passersby.

Meanwhile, Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported that the airstrikes hit a house in Mocha, killing ten citizens and wounding scores of others in nearby streets.

It gave no further details on the Mocha air raid, but recorded "over 20 airstrikes on civilian targets across several Yemeni provinces during the past 24 hours."

Saudi Arabia has been leading a war against Houthis in Yemen since March 26, in support of the elected government of a country torn by civil war since three years ago.

Iranian-allied Houthis, who are based in the far north border province of Saada and backed by forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, stormed the capital Sanaa and forced internationally recognized President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi with his government into exile in 2014 over charges of corruption.

The civil war and airstrikes have killed more than 6,400 people, half of them civilians, injured more than 35,000 others and displaced over two millions, according to humanitarian aid agencies.

The warring parties have been holding peace talks in Kuwait since April under auspices of the United Nations to seek political compromise to end the war.

On Friday, the Houthi group warned that continuing airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition would certainly abort the UN-brokered peace talks underway in Kuwait, according to a statement released by Saba. Endit