Saudis admit error after Yemen school bus attack

THE Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has admitted that an air strike that hit a school bus last month, killing dozens of children, was unjustified.

It comes amid mounting pressure from the coalition’s US backers to limit civilian deaths in air strikes. The coalition’s Joint Incident Assessment Team blamed “delays” for the error, which led to the bus being targeted in a crowded market in Saada province, resulting in 51 civilian deaths, including 40 children.

The coalition claims it had intelligence reports that Houthi leaders were on the bus. But it also said delays in executing the strike and receiving a nostrike order should be investigated. Mansour Ahmed al-mansour, a legal adviser to the team, told reporters that “coalition forces should initiate legal action to try and penalise those responsible for the mistakes, which caused collateral damage in the area”.

♦ Preparations are being made to transfer Abd-rabbu Mansour Hadi, Yemen’s exiled president, to the US to receive medical treatment, a Yemen government source told Reuters.