- Title: Twelve Yemeni civilians killed in Saudi-led air strike
- Date: 23rd November 2016
- Summary: PEOPLE STANDING ON STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HAJJA RESIDENT, AHMED ALY, SAYING: "Those who were on Hiran road, they were khat traders, from al-Darasi, they all died and we are now burying 13 martyrs and (sic) wounded." PEOPLE STANDING AROUND BODIES BODY LYING ON A BENCH OUTSOIDE A HOUSE AND MEN STANDING BY IT MEN COVERING VICTIM'S BODY WITH WHITE CLOTH (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HAJJA RESIDENT, QASSEM MANSOUR, SAYING: "Why should this helpless citizen who was targeted while in a car in the street or while at the market pay the price? We want this message to reach the world to condemn this aggression." MEN CARRYING BODY AND WALKING MEN STANDING BESIDE OTHER MAN DIGGING GRAVE MEN DIGGING GRAVE BURIAL SITE / MEN STANDING AROUND GRAVE PEOPLE STANDING BY MAIN STREET THAT WAS TARGETED
- Embargoed: 8th December 2016 15:34
- Keywords: Yemen civilians air strike Houthis
- Location: HAJJA, YEMEN
- City: HAJJA, YEMEN
- Country: Yemen
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Insurgencies
- Reuters ID: LVA00259O1WSN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES
At least twelve Yemeni civilians were killed by a Saudi-led air strike while riding in a pickup truck in the country's northwest early on Wednesday (November 23), residents said.
Locals said the passengers were shoppers heading to a local market in the Hiran area of northwest Hajja province, which is controlled by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement.
Ahmed Aly, a resident in the area said, "Those who were on Hiran road, they were khat traders, from al-Darasi, they all died and we are now burying 13 martyrs and (sic) wounded."
A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Yemen's Houthis since March 2015 to restore the internationally recognised president, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who lives in exile in Saudi Arabia.
A spokesman for the coalition did not immediately respond to requests for comment. But the coalition says it does not target civilians.
Thousands of air strikes have largely failed to dislodge the Houthis from the capital, Sanaa, but have hit schools, markets, hospitals and homes, killing many civilians.
"Why should this helpless citizen who was targeted while in a car in the street or while at the market pay the price? We want this message to reach the world to condemn this aggression," Qassem Mansour said.
Rights groups say they may amount to war crimes, but the coalition has argued that the Houthi fighters infiltrate and endanger civilian areas.
At least 10,000 people have been killed in the 20-month conflict which has unleashed a humanitarian crisis on one of the Arab world's poorest countries. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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