A marketplace in the central Yemeni city of Taiz was attacked today, according to Doctors Without Borders (MSF), who reported treating scores of wounded victims. At least 21 civilians were killed, and 75 wounded in the heavy shelling.
Taiz has been the site of a lot of fighting in recent months, with pro-Saudi forces and the Shi’ite Houthis each controlling portions of the city, and regularly fighting over the area between them. The market was in a Houthi-controlled area, but it’s unclear if the pro-Saudi Yemeni forces are behind the attack, or some other faction.
MSF reported that one of their employees was among the slain in the shelling, and that he was off-duty at the time. They added that a number of the casualties were suffering from severe burns and lacerations, along with broken bones from shell impact.
Taiz is considered an important city because it is on the main highway between the capital city of Sanaa and the pro-Saudi faction’s southern port capital of Aden. During the Saudi invasion, the city was attacked heavily in an attempt to secure a straight line to the capital, but it has remained contested ever since.