News / Yemen / News

Air raids leave 17 dead in southern Yemeni district

Sunday, 13 March 2016 9:18 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 13 March 2016 11:14 AM ]

People gather around a crater near houses destroyed by a Saudi airstrike in Yemen's capital, Sana’a, on February 25, 2016. ©Reuters

At least 17 people have reportedly been killed in aerial attacks against a troubled district in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden.

A security official, requesting anonymity, said on Sunday that the assaults hit al-Mansoura district of Aden overnight, claiming that 17 suspected members of the al-Qaeda terror group were killed in the strikes.

The official added that the airstrikes targeted the militants who were sitting atop vehicles, and one of them struck a local government building.

A least 20 civilians and militants plus three members of security forces sustained injuries in the attacks, according to the source.

It was not immediately clear who has carried out the raids; however, the source said the raids are thought to have been conducted by the Saudi military.

This is while US drone strikes in Yemen have continued alongside the Saudi military aggression against the Arab country. Washington claims the drones target al-Qaeda militants, but local sources say civilians have been the main victims of the attacks.

Yemen has been under military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March last year. The Saudi military strikes were launched to supposedly undermine the Ansarullah movement and bring former Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, back to power.

At least 8,400 people, among them 2,236 children, have reportedly been killed and 16,015 others injured, since March 2011. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country’s facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories.

The Yemen-based al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has exploited the volatile atmosphere and the breakdown of security in Yemen since the beginning of the Saudi war to tighten its grip on parts of southeast Yemen.

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