US says blast near UNESCO world heritage site in Yemen was caused by Houthi missile

WASHINGTON — The US military says a blast on Sunday near a UNESCO world heritage site in Yemen’s capital city of Sanaa was caused by a Houthi missile and not an American airstrike.

The Houthi-run health ministry said a dozen people were killed in the US strike in a neighborhood of Sanaa. The Old City of Sanaa is a recognized UNESCO World Heritage Site.

President Donald Trump ordered the intensification of US strikes on Yemen last month, with his administration saying they will continue assaulting Iran-backed Houthi rebels until they stop attacking Red Sea shipping.

A US Central Command spokesperson says the damage and casualties described by Yemen’s Houthi officials “likely did occur” but they were not caused by a U.S. attack. The closest US strike that night was more than three miles (5 kilometers) away, the spokesperson says.

The US military assessed that the damage was caused by a “Houthi air defense missile” based on a review of “local reporting, including videos documenting Arabic writing on the missile’s fragments at the market,” the spokesperson says, adding the Houthis subsequently arrested Yemenis. He does not provide evidence.