Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Seven people were killed and 40 others, including children, were injured in a strike on shops at a market in Yemen’s Taiz province on Sunday, according to the Houthi-run health ministry.
The strike took place at the Mawiya junction, with the ministry saying commercial shops at the market were targeted.
However, Yemen’s internationally recognised government gave a different account of the incident, saying its forces had targeted a Houthi military camp and vehicles at the same junction.
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Three military sources within the Yemeni government told Reuters that Houthi militants had recently established a military camp near the market. The competing accounts could not be independently verified.
A local source in Taiz also told the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) that Saudi airstrikes had targeted commercial shops at Taiz Central Market, killing seven people and injuring 40 others.
CONFLICTING ACCOUNTS OVER TARGET
The strike comes amid an intensifying military confrontation between the Iran-aligned Houthi movement and Saudi-backed forces in Yemen.
The internationally recognised Yemeni government said the target at the Mawiya junction was a Houthi military position and vehicles. The Houthi-run health ministry, however, said the strike hit commercial shops and caused civilian casualties.
The incident comes as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have increased in recent months. On Saturday, Saudi Arabia’s Saudi-led coalition said its air defences intercepted two drones launched by the Houthis towards Riyadh. It also said a ballistic missile targeting the southern city of Khamis Mushait was intercepted. Saudi civil defence authorities issued alerts overnight for Khamis Mushait and Abha.
The latest attacks followed a Houthi assault on Riyadh earlier in September. On September 19, the Houthis claimed to have targeted sites in the Saudi capital with missiles and drones, while Saudi authorities said their air defences intercepted incoming threats.
The incident was the first reported Houthi attack on Riyadh since the current escalation began in July.
CONFLICT ESCALATES AFTER YEARS-LONG TRUCE
The latest escalation began in July after the Houthis resumed attacks on Saudi Arabia following a four-year truce. On July 13, Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted missiles launched towards its southern region, while the Houthis said they had targeted Abha airport.
The attacks marked the first claimed Houthi strikes against Saudi Arabia since an informal truce took effect in March 2022.
Since then, the conflict has expanded beyond individual missile and drone attacks. The Houthis have made significant territorial gains along Yemen’s western coast.
In September, the group seized Yemen’s entire Red Sea coastline and captured three strategic islands in a rapid offensive, according to Reuters.
The developments have increased concerns over the security of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a major shipping route linking Europe and Asia.
The escalation has also raised concerns over the humanitarian situation in Yemen.
The United Nations has said the recent fighting has killed hundreds of people and displaced more than 120,000, while millions remain dependent on humanitarian assistance.
The strike in Taiz is the latest incident in the widening confrontation, with the conflicting accounts over whether a market or a Houthi military position was the intended target highlighting the difficulties in independently establishing details from the battlefield.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
