Child among 13 killed by Yemen rebel missile
A child was among 13 people killed when a missile fired by Yemeni rebels struck a tribal leader's home south of the strategic city of Marib, military and medical sources said yesterday.
"A Huthi ballistic missile hit the house of Sheikh Abdul Latif al-Qibli in Al-Jawba on Thursday evening during a meeting with tribal leaders fighting on the government's side," a government military official said.
"Thirteen people, including a child, were killed," he said. The death toll was confirmed by a medical source in the area.
Marib, capital of the oil-rich province of the same name, is the internationally recognised government's last bastion in northern Yemen.
The Iran-backed Huthis began a major push to seize the city in February and, after a lull, they have renewed their offensive in recent weeks.
They claimed this week to have reached the vicinity of Marib city and to have nearly surrounded it.
As well as the child, Thursday evening's missile strike also killed four tribal leaders, said the military official.
Yemen's Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said on Twitter that at least 12 people were killed, including two sons of Qibli, whose fate was unknown.
The Huthi "militia continues to systematically and deliberately bombard villages and homes... in order to inflict max casualties among civilians" forcing hundreds of families and displaced to flee, he wrote.
The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen's government has been conducting a fierce air campaign since October 11 to prevent the rebels from reaching Marib city.
Since then, around 2,000 Huthi fighters have been killed in Al-Jawba about 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Marib and two other districts, according to the coalition.
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