Iran-backed rebels in Yemen fired rockets into a residential district of Taez, killing 14 civilians, mostly women and children, officials said Monday, as battles raged for control of the key city. The bodies of those killed, including seven women and four children, were taken overnight to the morgue at a public hospital in Taez, said the medical officials.
Several other civilians were wounded and hospitalised. The Shia Houthi rebels and their allies had fired Katyusha rockets on Sunday targeting the district in central Taez, according to medics and residents. Viewed as the key to controlling the capital Sanaa, Taez has been the scene of deadly fighting between the rebels and loyalists of Yemen's exiled government. Battles in the city, south-west of Sanaa, have intensified in recent weeks as loyalists pressed an offensive in which they have so far recaptured five southern provinces.
Pro-government forces claim to control "75 percent" of the city, including the presidential palace and the residence of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh - whose supporters are fighting among Houthi ranks. But this could not be confirmed from independent sources. Meanwhile, Saudi-led warplanes carried out several strikes Monday against rebel positions in the province of Marib, east of Sanaa, officials said.
One official said up to 53 Houthis were killed in the raids, but there was no independent confirmation of the report. According to the official, a Scud-type missile struck five vehicles and three trucks that were transporting weapons to the rebels, destroying them.
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