New Saudi airstrikes kill 12, injure 15 in Yemen

Saudi fighter jets have carried out new airstrikes against Yemen’s Sa’ada Province, killing 12 civilians and injuring 15 others.

Saudi warplanes pounded a popular market in Baqem district of the arid and mountainous province, which lies 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of the capital, Sana’a, on Friday afternoon, causing the casualties.

Earlier in the day, five people, among them a one-year-old girl, lost their lives and three others sustained injuries when Saudi fighter jets bombarded Haydan district, located about 60 kilometers (37 miles) southwest of the northwestern Yemeni city of Sa’ada.

Meanwhile, a Saudi military base near the city of Dhahran al-Jonoub in Saudi Arabia was targeted with missile and artillery shells fired by Yemeni army troopers and members of allied Popular Committees in a retaliatory attack.

Saudi jets also launched seven aerial attacks against Wadi Lieh and al-Zaher districts in Sa’ada Province on Friday. No information was, however, available about possible fatalities.

Elsewhere in Yemen, Saudi military aircraft launched six airstrikes against a military camp in Kitaf district in Sa’ada. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Additionally, several people were killed or injured as mortar and artillery rounds fired by Saudi forces targeted the city of Amran, located 52 kilometers (32 miles) northwest of Sana’a.

Saudi warplanes also bombarded Aqaba district in the northern al-Jawf Province, though there were no reports of casualties or damage to property in the area.

Moreover, five members of a family also died when Saudi warplanes struck the old quarter of the Yemeni capital on Friday, destroying three houses in the UNESCO-listed heritage site.

UNESCO condemned the Saudi air raid on the historical area and described the district as “one of the world’s oldest jewels” of Islamic culture, urging parties to the conflict to respect Yemen’s heritage.

“I am profoundly distressed by the loss of human lives as well as by the damage inflicted on one of the world's oldest jewels of Islamic urban landscape,” said UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova, adding, “This destruction will only exacerbate the humanitarian situation and I reiterate my call to all parties to respect and protect cultural heritage in Yemen.”

Bokova further said she was “shocked by the images of these magnificent many-storeyed tower-houses and serene gardens reduced to rubble.”

“The historic value and memories enshrined in these sites have been irreparably damaged or destroyed,” the UNESCO chief noted.

Separately, four people were killed and three others injured as Saudi warplanes hit a house in the Monabbih district of Sa’ada Province.

Saudi Arabia has been carrying out military attacks against Yemen since March 26. The United Nation says at least 2,300 people have been killed and 7,330 injured due to the conflict in the Arab state since March 19.

MP/MKA/HJL

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk