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Drone crashes in Yemen’s Ma’rib: Witnesses, officials

The photo shows the wreckage of a Saudi surveillance drone that was brought down by the Yemeni forces in Yemen’s western province of Dhamar on July 6, 2015.

An unmanned drone has crashed in the central Yemeni province of Ma’rib as Saudi warplanes keep pounding the crisis-hit Arabian Peninsula country.

A Yemeni witnesses and local officials said on Monday that the unmanned drone crashed in Wadi Abida, close to the city of Ma’rib.

The drone’s origin was not immediately known.

The incident came weeks after Yemen's Ansarullah fighters captured a Saudi surveillance drone in the northwestern Yemeni province of Sa'ada. Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network reported that Yemeni forces targeted the remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as it was flying over al-Dhaher district in the arid and mountainous province, which lies 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of the capital Sana’a.

On July 6, Yemeni army soldiers backed by Houthi Ansarullah fighters downed a Saudi UAV while conducting a surveillance mission in Sa’ada.

In early May, Ansarullah fighters took possession of a Saudi surveillance drone, which had parachute-landed in Sa’ada due to a technical glitch.

Smoke billows following an airstrike by Saudi Arabia targeting an arms depot on a mountain overlooking the Yemeni capital Sana’a on October 15, 2015. (AFP)

Saudi military aggression

Local sources said on Monday that Saudi warplanes launched a series of sorties against different areas in Taiz, destroying houses and public and private properties.

The source pointed out that the Saudi airstrikes targeted Taiz airport, al-Hajr village, and al-Khadra area in the province.

The Saudi fighter jets also pounded the Yemeni capital, targeting several areas including Faj Attan, Nahdain and the presidential palace.

The Saudi jets also launched seven airstrikes on the Sirwah district of Mar’ib, targeting a number of residential buildings there.

There has been no report on the possible casualties of the Saudi attacks.

Yemen has been under military strikes by Saudi Arabia on a daily basis since March 26. The strikes are supposedly meant to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and restore power to Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh.

About 6,400 people have reportedly lost their lives in the Saudi strikes, and a total of nearly 14,000 people have been injured since March. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, 505 children are among the fatalities.


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