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149 killed in 24 hours in Yemen’s Hodeida: medics, military
HODEIDA, Yemen, Nov 12, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – At least 149 people including
civilians have been killed in 24 hours of clashes between government
loyalists and rebels in Yemen’s flashpoint city of Hodeida, medics and
military sources said Monday.
A military official in Hodeida confirmed seven civilians had died, without
giving further details.
The Red Sea port city, controlled by Yemen’s Huthi rebels since 2014, is a
vital entry point for aid into the impoverished country.
A source in Yemen’s pro-government military coalition, which is backed by a
Saudi-led military alliance, said the Huthis had pushed back a large-scale
offensive aimed at moving towards Hodeida port.
Medics in hospitals across the city reported 110 rebels and 32 loyalist
fighters killed overnight.
Sources at the Al-Alfi military hospital, seized by the rebels during their
2014 takeover, said charred body parts had been delivered there overnight.
Military sources confirmed that the Saudi-led alliance had targeted the
rebels with multiple air strikes.
Nearly 600 people have been killed since clashes erupted on November 1 in
Hodeida, one of Yemen’s most densely populated cities.
Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in the Yemeni government’s fight
against the Iran-backed Huthis in 2015, triggering what the UN now calls the
world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
The Hodeida port is a vital lifeline for aid deliveries to Yemenis across
the war-torn country, where 14 million people face imminent famine.
The port has been under blockade by the Saudi-led coalition for a year.
The alliance accuses Iran of smuggling arms to the Huthis through the
Hodeida port.
Tehran denies the charges.
BSS/AFP/GMR/1304 hrs