Houthi missile kills three women and two children at Yemen wedding party

Five civilians, including two children, were killed in Yemen when a Houthi rocket struck a wedding celebration in Al Hazem district of Al Jawf province.

Tariq Razzaz, a journalist for Aden TV, said that the rebels deliberately aimed a Katyusha missile at the all-female party. At least 10 women were injured.

“Three women and two children were killed,” Razzaz said. “The wedding quickly turned from a celebration to a funeral, sparking a wave of anger among the residents.

“They are furious at the rebels, who continuously target areas that have been liberated from them and have no concern for the civilians they are killing.”

Razzaz said that the criminal activity of the Iran-backed militia, which has been fighting forces of the internationally recognised government of President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi since 2014, did not stop there.

Security forces in Al Hazem seized 240 kilograms of heroin that was making its way to the Houthi rebels, he said.

“The authorities seized a truck that was carrying the drugs hidden under baskets of onions and the driver admitted that he was delivering them to Houthi officials in Saada province to the north of Al Jawf,” Razzaz said.

It is believed that the rebels sell the drugs to help to fund their campaign.

Meanwhile, the Arab Coalition fighting on behalf of the legitimate government destroyed four Houthi tanks on Sunday along the route between the port city of Hodeidah and the capital Sanaa, a security source said.

The coalition, which includes Saudi Arabia and the UAE, intervened in the Yemen war in March 2015 at the request of Mr Hadi’s government after the rebels took control of Sanaa.

On Sunday, a special investigative panel made up of members of the Saudi-led coalition, dismissed five allegations that the coalition had struck civilian targets in Yemen during its fight against the Houthis. Mansour Al Mansour, spokesman for the Joint Incident Assessment Team, said investigations showed that the allegations by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Committee of the Red Cross, Human Rights Watch and Yemeni media were baseless.

The panel examined all related documents including the coalition’s daily mission schedule, after-mission reports, satellite images and other evidence, Mr Al Mansour said.

He said the committee was still reviewing 70 other allegations made against the coalition and would continue to report its findings.

At least 10,000 people have been killed and millions displaced in the Yemen conflict.

The British minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Alistair Burt, yesterday said that he met the Yemeni Foreign Minister, Khaled Al Yamani, in Riyadh to discuss the latest developments.

Mr Burt repeated his country’s commitment to find a political solution to the Yemeni crisis.

“Pleased to meet Yemeni Foreign Minister, Khaled Al Yamani, in Riyadh,” he tweeted. “We discussed the impact of the conflict on ordinary Yemenis, who have a right to legitimate governance.

“We committed to work together with the UN special envoy [Martin Griffiths] to achieve a political solution.”

Mr Burt said he discussed the situation in Yemen with Saudi officials, including the kingdom’s foreign minister, Adel Al Jubeir.

Mr Griffiths said last month that he hoped to bring the warring parties in Yemen to the negotiating table in the next few weeks to end fighting, particularly in Hodeidah.

The UN envoy has so far failed to convince the Houthis to withdraw from the city.