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UN condemns hospital hit in Yemen war as govt says ready for talks
[DAWN] A senior UN official expressed alarm on Friday at deadly strikes in Yemen's rebel-held port city of Hodeida, as the government said it was ready to attend UN-brokered talks in Geneva.At least 20 people were killed and 60 maimed on Thursday in an air strike at the al-Thawra hospital and the bombardment of a fish market in Hodeida, according to medics and witnesses. "This is shocking," said Lise Grande, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Yemen. Hundreds of thousands of people depend on al-Thawra, which is Yemen's largest hospital, she said. "Hospitals are protected under international humanitarian law. Nothing can justify this loss of life." Yemeni government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition have been conducting an offensive to capture Hodeida from Iran-backed Houthis, but announced last month they were pausing the assault to give UN mediation efforts a chance. Rebel-run media outlets have accused the coalition of carrying out Thursday's attacks in Hodeida. But a coalition front man on Friday denied the charges, accusing the Huthis of having bombed the hospital and the fish market. The nearest target hit by the coalition on Wednesday or Thursday was more than two kilometres (one mile) away from the two sites, the front man told a news conference in Riyadh. Posted by: Fred 2018-08-04 |
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