Explosion in Yemeni city of Marib kills at least eight people

At least eight people were killed in explosions that shook the Yemeni city of Marib.

Minister Muammar al-Iryani wrote in a Twitter post that the Houthis fired two ballistic missiles and two armed drones and had hit a mosque, a commercial centre and a women’s correctional facility as well as ambulances rushing to the scene.

He put the initial death toll at eight, including women, and said 27 people had been wounded.

An army spokesperson told local television channel that the missiles hit a residential area and a commercial market.

He said the Houthis launched two drones but one was downed and the other exploded in mid-air.

Earlier this month at least 17 people were killed in an explosion near a petrol station in



Marib.

Yemen has been mired in violence since the Houthis ousted the Saudi-backed government from the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014, prompting a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia to intervene months later.

The United Nations, backed by the United States, is pressing for a ceasefire and for the Houthis to end their offensive in Marib, which hosts around 1 million internally displaced people.

It has also urged the coalition to lift sea and air restrictions on areas held by the Houthis, who say they are fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression.

The conflict, seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, has caused what the United Nations says is the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.