Saudi airstrikes 'kill scores' at Yemeni wedding

Saudi airstrikes 'kill scores' at Yemeni wedding
Saudi-led coalition airstrikes targeting a Yemeni wedding celebration near the Saudi border, which killed at least 50, including the bride.
2 min read
23 April, 2018
Images of the destruction soon appeared on social media [Twitter]
More than 50 people were killed after two airstrikes by Saudi-led coalition aircraft targeted a wedding party in Hajja Province in Yemen on Sunday evening, local sources told al-Araby al-Jadeed.

Local Houthi sources added that the double-tap strikes targeted the wedding in the Bani Qais district in the Hajja Province - which borders Saudi Arabia - killing 50 wedding goers, including women and children.

Khaled al-Nadhri, the top health official in the northern province of Hajja, told The Associated Press on Monday that most of the dead were women and children who were gathered in one of the tents set up for the wedding party.

He added that the bride was also among the dead.

Hospital chief Mohammed al-Sawmali says the groom and 45 wounded guests were brought to the local al-Jomhouri Hospital.

Some reports on social media put the death doll closer to 120.

The strikes targeted the house of Jaafar Musabi in the Raqqa neighbourhood of Bani Qais, sources added.

The Saudi-led coalition is yet to comment on the reports.

The coalition of Arab countries has been waging a war on Yemen's Zaydi-Shia rebels known as Houthis, who control much of the north, to restore the internationally recognised government to power.

Following the shooting down of several allegedly Houthi drones and ballistic missiles in southern Saudi Arabia, the coalition warned last week of a "painful" response if the more attacks were launched by the UN.

Along with its air campaign, the Saudi-led coalition has imposed periodic blockades on Yemen's ports. Both actions have killed nearly 10,000 people - most of them civilians - and have left more than 18 million in need of aid, according to the UN.

Agencies contributed to this report.