Airstrikes kill 27, mostly women and children, near Yemen's capital, Houthis say

NEW DELHI: Airstrikes hit homes in a village near Yemen's capital, Sanaa, on Saturday, killing at least 27 people and injuring 36 others, most of them women and children, according to a spokesperson for the Houthi-run Health Ministry.Speaking to The Associated Press (AP), ministry spokesperson Anees al-Asbahi said the death toll could rise as rescue teams continued searching through the rubble. He accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out the strikes on al-Shariya village.Houthi military spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree later claimed that the group had launched attacks against Saudi Arabia in response to the strikes on the village and a separate deadly attack on a market in southwestern Yemen on Friday.However, the Houthi claims could not independently verified.The village, located about 15 km northeast of Sanaa in Houthi-controlled territory, suffered extensive damage. Footage aired by Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV showed destroyed homes, thick dust in the air and residents taking shelter in nearby agricultural fields.The footage also showed hospital staff carrying injured children from ambulances. Several children were seen lying on stretchers with bloodied and bandaged bodies as medical staff treated them.Al-Asbahi told Al-Masirah that civilians remained trapped under the rubble. He also alleged that further strikes targeted emergency workers as they tried to rescue survivors.Saturday's airstrikes came a day after an attack on a market in southern Yemen killed at least 30 people, according to Houthi officials. Both the Houthis and Yemen's Saudi-backed military blamed each other for the attack.The latest violence marks a sharp escalation in Yemen's civil war, raising fears that the country could slide back into a prolonged conflict after years of relative calm.The Houthis, who are backed by Iran, control Sanaa and large parts of northern and western Yemen. Their opponents, backed by Saudi Arabia, are based mainly in the south and east.Yemen's war began in 2014, when the Houthis seized Sanaa and forced the internationally recognised government from the capital.Saudi Arabia later led a coalition in support of the government and launched a prolonged air campaign against the rebels, which drew international criticism over civilian casualties.The conflict has killed at least 150,000 people, according to the United Nations. Many more have died from hunger and disease, creating one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.A truce reached in 2022 brought a period of relative calm, but fighting has intensified again since the summer. The Houthis have launched new offensives, saying they were responding to Saudi Arabia's continued blockade of areas under their control.The group has also stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia, targeting oil and military infrastructure, as well as shipping in the Red Sea. The Saudi-led coalition, meanwhile, says its airstrikes in Houthi-held areas are aimed at the rebels' military infrastructure.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.