At least four civilians, among them a pregnant woman, have been killed and 3 others injured in fresh Saudi airstrikes against Yemen as Riyadh pushes ahead with its military campaign against popular committees including Houthi Ansarullah revolutionaries in the impoverished Arab country.
Local sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the victims lost their lives when Saudi military aircraft fired several missiles into a number of houses in al-Matammah district of the northern al-Jawf province, located approximately 110 kilometers (68 miles) north of the capital, Sana'a, on Saturday morning, Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network reported.
The development comes only hours after Saudi warplanes pounded al-Dailami airbase, which shares the runway with Sana'a International Airport.
Although there were no reports of casualties, the airborne assault destroyed at least one Bell 412 utility helicopter, one Bell UH-1 Iroquois (also known as Huey) military helicopter as well as one CN-235 medium-range transport plane.
Hundreds of civilians, including women and children, have been killed in the Saudi airborne attacks against Yemen.
Saudi Arabia’s air campaign against Yemen started on March 26 without a UN mandate in a bid to restore power to Yemen’s former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.
Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by the Houthi Ansarullah movement.
On March 25, the fugitive former president fled Aden, where he had sought to set up a rival power base, to Riyadh after Ansarullah revolutionaries advanced on the port.
Ansarullah fighters and their allies are now advancing southward while they have also stepped up the fight against al-Qaeda terrorists and secured many areas.
MP/NN/HRB