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Fighting in Yemen kills over 3,700 civilians since March of last year: UN

Xinhua, August 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

Ground battles and airstrikes in Yemen have killed 3,704 civilians and injured 6,566 since March of 2015 when Saudi Arabia led a military coalition against the Houthis and Saleh's forces, a UN official said on Friday.

Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told a press briefing here on Friday that the number of civilian casualties in Yemen has been steadily mounting over the past few weeks.

"Despite the cessation of hostilities, between April 11 and August 11 of this year, we have documented 815 civilian casualties, including 272 deaths and 543 injured," she said, adding that of these 49 civilians were killed and another 77 injured in just the past week.

She told reporters that only several days ago, on Aug. 9, an airstrike hit Al Khafifa food factory in the Al Nahdhah district of Sana'a, killing 10 civilians, including three women who worked in the factory.

According to her, a journalist was reportedly struck by two shells on Aug. 5.

Yemen has been locked in a civil war since the Houthis seized power and overturned the Yemeni government in late 2014.

In March 2015, the Saudi-led coalition launched a bombing campaign to restore the legitimacy of the government. However, the military intervention has deepened the conflict and crises across the country. Endit