Sanaa, Oct 3 (IANS) A series of powerful explosions rocked Yemen’s Houthi-held capital Sanaa on Saturday, as the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported fresh “Saudi airstrikes” on the city amid a sharp escalation in the country’s conflict.
More than seven explosions were heard across Sanaa within a short period, local residents told Xinhua on Saturday, adding that the sound of warplanes could be heard overhead as the blasts shook several parts of the city.
They said that the strikes appeared to hit several Houthi-held military sites, with plumes of smoke seen rising from the mountainous areas of Al-Nahdayn and Jabal Attan in different parts of Sanaa, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Meanwhile, al-Masirah TV confirmed that Sanaa had been hit by airstrikes on Saturday, describing them as “Saudi aggression,” but did not immediately provide details about the targets or possible casualties.
There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia on the Houthi report.
Last month, Saudi airstrikes and missile attacks hit several Houthi-held areas across western, southwestern and northern Yemen, with casualties reported in the Red Sea province of Hodeidah, Houthi-run media said.
Al-Masirah TV reported that “Saudi aggression warplanes” carried out around 15 airstrikes across Hodeidah on Wednesday, targeting telecommunications infrastructure and other facilities.
The strikes hit telecommunications towers in Al Marawi’ah and Al-Qati’ in Hodeidah as well as a radio station building in Bajil, the channel said. It added that at least two people were killed and four others wounded in Wednesday’s strikes in Hodeidah.
The strikes on Sanaa came as Yemen’s conflict entered one of its sharpest escalations in years, with heavy fighting spreading across southwestern Yemen and renewed missile, drone and air attacks reviving direct hostilities between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia.
Yemen’s conflict began in late 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognised government.
–IANS
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