At Least 32 Killed Around Yemen’s Hodeidah in Fighting, Saudi Airstrikes

Saudi-backed forces continue to advance against vital aid port

Hospitals in and around the Yemeni aid port of Hodeidah have reported 32 people were killed and 14 wounded on Sunday in a series of clashes around the area, and in the course of multiple Saudi airstrikes against the Houthi movement.

The slain were all labeled “rebels” by pro-Saudi military sources, which is unsurprising. At least four of the slain were killed in an airstrike against a radio station, however, and indications are these were just employees of the station, not combatants.

Since the UN-backed peace talks in Geneva failed a week ago, Saudi-backed forces have been escalating strikes against Hodeidah, trying to claim the last Houthi-controlled port city in the country, and gaining substantial territory around the outskirts.

Houthi FM Hisham Sharaf Abdallah says that the movement continues to support UN peace efforts, and urged them to do something to pressure the Saudis to stop striking civilians. So far, there is little sign the UN will make any such attempt, and even if they do, the US has already expressed relative comfort with Saudi airstrikes.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.