TAIZ — At least 51 civilians were killed and 85 others injured, including dozens of women and children, in attacks carried out by the Houthi militia in Yemen’s southwestern Taiz province over a 12-day period, a Yemeni human rights organization said Saturday.
The Taiz Human Rights Center said it documented the casualties between Nov. 1 and 12, attributing them to attacks involving ballistic missiles, artillery shelling, sniper fire, gunfire and landmines.
According to the center, 13 children and three women were among those killed, while the injured included 30 children and 16 women.
The organization said three particularly deadly attacks targeted Al-Najd market in Al-Misrakh district, Al-Athawer village in Haifan district and Al-Hadara popular market in Al-Wazi’iyah district.
Those attacks alone killed 43 civilians and wounded 30 others, accounting for a significant proportion of the casualties recorded during the reporting period.
The center also accused the Houthis of abducting civilians, raiding homes and destroying residential properties, as well as attacking civilian property, healthcare facilities and educational institutions.
The reported attacks come amid intensified fighting between Yemeni government forces and the Houthis, as the country’s armed forces pledged to continue military operations under Operation “Dawn of Yemen.”
The military campaign, launched on Oct. 5, aims to restore state institutions from Houthi control and recapture the capital, Sanaa, according to Rashad al-Alimi, chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council.
Yemeni armed forces have said they remain committed to achieving the operation’s objectives while taking measures to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Fighting between government forces and the Houthis has escalated since July, particularly in Taiz province, which overlooks the strategically important Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Source: Saudi Gazette