Thirty-one people died after an air strike by a Saudi-led military coalition against Yemen rebels on Yemen, Saturday.
According to the United Nations, the Iran-backed Yemen rebels also known as Houthi, claimed to have shot down one of the coalitions war plane , thus the Saudi-led coalition decided to retaliate with an air strike.
Last Friday, in an operation to support Yemen government forces, a Tornado aircraft went down in the northern part of Al-Jawf province after being shot down by the rebels. This prompted the Saudi-led military coalition to fight the rebels and take action.
It can be recalled that the warring parties have a history of upsurged fighting in the north part of Yeen, which continues to worsen the humanitarian crisis of the war-battered nation.
According to Yemen's UN humanitarian coordinator, Lisa Grande, preliminary reports have identified that the 31 people who were killed were civilian and there are 12 others who were injured courtesy of the air strike. She further added that should warring parties resolve to violence and force, it is stated under the International Humanitarian Law they are still obligated to protect civilians. Grande also condemned the air strikes saying that the belligerents are still failing to protect the civilians five years into the conflict.
The Houthi rebels have reported through the rebel television station, Al-Masirah, that children and women are among the dead and injured after the multiple air strikes by the coalition in the crash site of the Riyadh jet. The coalition, on the other hand, referred to the deaths as possible collateral damage in a search and rescue operation at the crash site while looking for the jet's crew.
As reported by the Guardian, the coalition released a statement through Saudi Press Agency saying that the crew of the jet were able to eject themselves from the plane before the crash. However, they shot at them which was also a violation of the international humanitarian law. The cause of the crash, however, remained unstated as well as the fate of the crew which is until now a mystery if they had survived.
Before the air strike happened, the Houthi rebels released a footage of their "advance surface-to-air missile" which struck the coalition jet out of the sky into a crashing ball of flames.
It can be recalled that the conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when the Houthis took over the capital, who controls a majority of the country's northern part along the borders of Saudi Arabia. In 2015, the Saudi-led coalition of the Arab-state began to intervene when they tried to restore President Abed Raboo Mansour Haddi and internationally recognized government to power.
During this intervention, the coalition has led airstrikes to hit hospitals, schools, and even wedding parties. In response the rebels used drones and missiles to strike back at the Arabian country.
According to Time, the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project has recorded more than 100,000 people including civilians over the course of the war. This has also resulted to the worst humanitarian crisis the world has seen with millions suffering from shortage of food and medical attention.
