UN official asks Saudi Arabia to stop bombing Yemen’s Hudaydah

The United Nations has called on Saudi Arabia to put an end to its devastating aerial bombardment against Yemen's western port city of Hudaydah, which serves as a primary entry point for humanitarian aid and fuel for the impoverished conflict-ridden Arab country.

The UN humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, told reporters in the Jordanian capital city of Amman on Thursday that Hudaydah, located 150 kilometers southwest of the capital Sana'a, was a vital lifeline for millions of Yemenis, who were facing starvation.

“This port is the most essential, the most crucial part of our ability to feed people and get medical services into Yemen. The Hudaydah port is the only port that we can use to serve the bulk of the population in need,” the senior UN official said.

McGoldrick further expressed hope that participants at a forthcoming high-level event in the Swiss city of Geneva next week would honor their promises and pay their share of the $2.1 billion that the UN needed to prevent an impending humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen. 

Fresh Saudi strikes leave eight Yemenis dead

Meanwhile, at least eight people have been killed and several others injured when Saudi warplanes carried out two separate airstrikes against residential areas in Yemen’s northern province of Jawf and the southwestern province of Ta'izz.

Local sources said Saudi jets fired a number of missiles at buildings in the al- Matun district of Jawf Province, killing five civilians. There were women and children among the victims, Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network reported.

Three people also lost their lives and 19 others were wounded as Saudi military aircraft bombed al-Barh Bridge in Maqbanah district of Ta’izz Province. The death toll is expected to rise as some of the victims are in critical condition. 

Yemeni snipers shoot dead Saudi trooper

In another development, Yemeni snipers shot dead a Saudi trooper in the kingdom’s southwestern border region of Jizan in response to Riyadh’s deadly airstrikes against their conflict-stricken country.

Yemeni snipers targeted the Saudi soldier in the al-Dafiniyah military camp of the Jizan region, located 969 kilometers south of the capital, Riyadh, on Thursday evening.

Saudi Arabia has been incessantly pounding Yemen since March 2015 in an attempt to bring back resigned president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, who is a staunch ally of Riyadh, to power and to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement.

The Riyadh regime has, however, failed to reach its goals despite suffering great expense.

The military aggression has claimed the lives of more than 12,000 people, most of them civilians.

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