Houthi drone attack military base in southern Yemen, 6 killed

  • 2019-01-11 00:57:21
 After the drones attack The UN is facing pressure to suspend peace talks in Yemen after a Houthi drone targeted the Yemeni government military high command, killing up to six people attending a military parade.The attack, involving a sophisticated drone not previously used by the Houthis, occurred outside the UN-administered ceasefire zone in Lahj province in the south of the country on Thursday. The Houthis said the drone strike was a reprisal for actions by the Saudi Arabian-backed government of Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The Houthis claim the Saudi air force is still launching attacks.With the UN still trying to implement key aspects of the outline and preliminary deal reached in Stockholm last month, the drone strike damages trust between the sides locked in a three-year civil war. It also highlights a drawback of a partial rather than nationwide ceasefire. The Yemen government’s information minister, Muammar al-Iryani, condemned the strike, saying: “Once again this proves that the Houthi criminal militias are not ready for peace and that they are exploiting truces in order for deployment and reinforcements. “This is time for the international community to stand by the legitimate government and force the militias to give up their weapons and pull out of the cities.” The Yemeni foreign minister, Khaled al-Yamani, speaking in Jordan, said the Houthis had yet to implement the central agreements struck in Stockholm, including the removal of its forces from Hodeidah, and the opening of the heavily mined road between the port city and the capital, Sana’a. Yemen’s government claims the Houthis have committed more than 400 breaches of the ceasefire. With Houthis making similar accusations against coalition forces, the absence of credible UN monitors makes the situation difficult to assess. The parade was taking place inside a military base in al-Anad district when a loud explosion rocked the area. High-level officials including the Yemeni army’s deputy chief of staff were wounded in the attack, as well as the head of the intelligence unit, the commander of the military police and the army commander of the fourth region. The Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news channel reported that six soldiers of the Yemeni army were killed and 20 others injured, among them journalists and the governor of Lahj.

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