Off the wire
Yemen Houthis say missile fired at Saudi airport as retaliation  • Roundup: Canadian PM to address European Parliament after CETA approval  • Ukraine imposes state of emergency in energy sector  • Ukrainian army denies involvement in Donetsk chemical plant blast  • China, Ukraine agree to develop security cooperation  • Foreign students annually contribute 179 mln USD to Latvian economy: think tank  • 2nd Ld-Writethru: Trump calls on Netanyahu to "hold back" on new settlement  • Zimbabwe forecasts maize output to triple after good rains  • 17 banks to be prosecuted in S. Africa for collusion  • Poll: Center Party regains position as Estonia's most popular  
You are here:   Home

Coalition airstrike kills 11 civilians in Yemen

Xinhua, February 16, 2017 Adjust font size:

The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemeni dominant Houthi rebels killed at least 11 women in an airstrike on a funeral house north of the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, a medic and security official said.

Ten others, also women, were critically wounded "when the airstrike hit the funeral in Shira area in Arhab district," the medic added, saying that the death toll is likely to increase.

The targeted funeral house was completely destroyed and scores of adjacent homes were damaged.

This is the latest in a series of airstrikes hitting Yemeni civilians since the war began in 2015.

Three days ago, the Saudi-led airstrikes killed a family of six in the Red Sea coast city of Mokha, according to medics and officials.

Last year, coalition airstrikes hit a funeral hall in the capital Sanaa, killing 140 mourners, including children, and wounded over 600 others.

Since March 2015, the coalition has been fighting the dominant Houthi rebels, who have seized control of most of northern Yemen, including Sanaa, to restore power to the expelled, internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The war has killed more than 10,000 people, half of them civilians, and displaced over two millions, according to humanitarian agencies. Endit