Air raids on Yemen capital mount as scores displaced

Saudi-led warplanes intensified their air strikes against Yemeni rebels in the capital on Wednesday, fuelling panic as political efforts to end a war that has displaced half a million people foundered.

The Arab coalition has waged an air campaign against the Iran-backed Shiite rebels since March 26 in an effort to restore the authority of exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who fled to 

Riyadh.

After a five-day humanitarian ceasefire expired at the weekend, the Saudi-led coalition resumed bombing several cities including the capital, accusing the rebels of having violated the truce.

Witnesses in rebel-held Sanaa described today’s bombing as the most violent so far, prompting residents to flee.

Loud explosions ripped through Sanaa until the early hours as warplanes targeted rebel-held arms depots for a second straight night, residents said.

“Sanaa witnessed during the night the most violent raids since the start of the bombing” by coalition warplanes, said Saleh Moqbel, one resident of the capital’s Old City.

Strikes since yesterday have hit arms depots in hills overlooking Sanaa as well as the rebel-held presidential complex, with explosions lighting up the skies, residents said.

The raids prompted many families to flee residential areas surrounding the hills and seek refuge elsewhere in the city, witnesses said.

“Some of these families were hosted by <g data-gr-id="41">relatives,</g> while others were forced to rent shelters, including garages, to spend the night,” said Hasan al-<g data-gr-id="37">Amudi</g> who lives in central Sanaa.

Hotel employee Ahmed <g data-gr-id="38">Melhi</g> told AFP that “since the start of the crisis the hotel had been completely empty. But today it is flooded with people from the <g data-gr-id="39">Noqum</g> and <g data-gr-id="40">Fajj</g> Attan neighbourhoods.” 

In the central province of Ibb, witnesses reported seven coalition air strikes, mostly targeting a pro-rebel army camp. Other strikes targeted the rebel stronghold of Amran province in north Yemen and Abyan province in the south.