At least 136 civilians in Yemen killed in Saudi-led airstrikes: UN

At least 136 civilians and non-combatants have been killed in air strikes led by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen since December 6, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Tuesday.

"We are deeply concerned at the recent surge in civilian casualties in Yemen as a result of intensified air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition, following the killing of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a on December 4," Xinhua quoted Rupert Colville, spokesperson for the UN rights office, as saying.

The Saudi-led coalition carried out seven air strikes on December 13 that struck a military police compound in the Shaub district of Sana'a and damaged a prison building and the prison yard, killing at least 45 people and injuring 53.

All the victims were said to belong to the Resistance Forces loyal to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, said Colvillle.

At the same briefing, the UN Children's Fund UNICEF said fuel was running out in water pumping stations serving more than three million people, half of them children.

--IANS

sku/