17 civilians killed in 3rd attack on Yemen market

Seventeen civilians were killed in an attack in a market in Yemen’s northern Saada governorate, the United Nations says, the third deadly assault on the same location in just over a month.

The attacks come despite relative calm in Yemen, where large-scale combat between government troops — backed by a Saudi-led military coalition — and the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels has largely subsided.

The UN says 12 Ethiopian migrants were among the 17 civilians killed in the incident on Tuesday at the Al-Raqw market in Saada governorate, a Huthi rebel stronghold.

At least 12 people were wounded, it says, without saying who was responsible or what weaponry was used.

The Saudi-led coalition acknowledged on Thursday it had carried out an operation in Monabbih, a Saada district where the market is located.

The Joint Incident Assessment Team (JIAT) — which the coalition established but says operates independently — will investigate “the possibility of collateral damage,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki says in a statement.

— AFP