The United Nations special envoy to Yemen has strongly condemned a series of deadly terrorist attacks in the Yemeni capital of Sana’a, including bombings at a number of mosques.
On Thursday, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed slammed the attacks carried out a day earlier, which led to the deaths of scores of people in the city.
He also deplored the killings of civilians and targeting of religious sites.
On June 17, more than 30 people lost their lives in five bombing attacks on the political office of the Houthi Ansarullah movement and three mosques in Sana'a.
ISIL Takfiri militants later claimed responsibility for the attacks.
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The UN special envoy further urged conflicting sides in the country to take all possible measures to avoid civilian casualties as required by international humanitarian law and to stay committed to the UN-mediated consultations on the Yemeni crisis in Switzerland.
Representatives of several Yemeni factions, including the Ansarullah movement, are taking part in UN-mediated consultations in the Swiss city of Geneva to find a way out of the ongoing conflict in the Arab country.
The UN Security Council (UNSC) in a statement on Thursday condemned the "horrific" attacks.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, also on Thursday denounced the bombings, saying the impoverished nation of Yemen is having to grapple with the double predicament of terrorism inside the country and an ongoing foreign military aggression.
Following the bombings, Ali al-Emad, a member of the Houthi delegation in the Geneva talks, said the recent attacks could be a new strategy by the Saudi regime.
The bombings come as Riyadh is continuing its airstrikes against the country.
The Saudi regime started its aggression on March 26 against its impoverished neighbor with an aim to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and bring its ally, fugitive former Yemeni president Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, back to power.
UN Human Rights spokesman Rupert Colville said on June 16 that at least 1,412 civilians, including 210 women, have been killed and a further 3,423 injured since March 26.
SZH/GHN/HMV