2 children killed, 15 injured in Houthi shelling of displaced people in Yemen’s Marib

Mohammed Sameai and Sahin Demir

Two children were killed and 15 people injured in Houthi shelling targeting a gathering of displaced people in Yemen’s central Marib province, local authorities said Tuesday.

The government-run local authority said in a statement that the Houthis fired several projectiles at a gathering of displaced people in the Raghwan district in northern Marib on Monday evening.

The attack killed two children and injured 15 people, including eight children, it said.

The shelling also caused extensive damage to the homes and property of displaced families.

According to the statement, around 16 shelters and their contents were destroyed, leaving 23 families without accommodation and basic belongings, while three vehicles were also damaged.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthi group on the statement.

According to Yemeni government reports, Marib hosts more than 2.2 million displaced people out of around 5 million across the country.

Several fronts in Yemen have witnessed renewed military escalation in recent days between government forces and the Houthis, particularly in Taiz, Al-Jawf and Al-Bayda provinces, alongside airstrikes on Houthi positions.

​​​​​​​Yemen has been engulfed in conflict since the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and several provinces in September 2014, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.