US air strike targets migrant centre in Yemen, killing 68
A US air strike hit a detention centre in the northern Saada province of Yemen, killing at least 68 individuals and leaving 47 others with injuries, Middle East Eye via the Yemen media outlet Al Masirah TV reported on April 28th.
The US military campaign against areas controlled by the Houthis targeted the centre used by African migrants. It has been established over a long period that Saada has been regarded as a bastion of the Houthis and has in the past been targeted by US strikes.
According to The Guardian on April 28th, Yemen has long functioned as a vital passage for Africans pursuing Saudi Arabia. One estimate says that there are over 300,000 migrants across Yemen, a nation which has suffered from a decade of devastating civil war.
According to the Yemeni Ministry of the Interior, the centre was housing 115 migrants from Africa at the time of the attack.
The military stated that Central Command was “aware of the claims of civilian casualties related to the U.S. strikes in Yemen, and we take those claims very seriously.” They added: “We are currently conducting our battle-damage assessment and inquiry into those claims,” according to CNN on April 28th.
The US has carried out almost daily attacks on the Houthis since March 15th, in a military campaign called “Rough Rider.” The operation aims to eliminate the threat the Houthis pose to ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis began targeting Israeli and Western ships in the Red Sea in October 2023. They call this action an act of solidarity for Palestinians in Gaza.
Al Jazeera reported on March 28th that the Houthis said that recent US air strikes on the areas they control raised the death toll to at least 57. Following this, on April 18th, a US strike killed at least 74 and wounded 171 others.
The Iran-aligned group stated that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the Red Cross managed the centre. It said targeting the centre was “a full-fledged war crime.”
CNN, Middle East Eye via Al Masirah TV, The Guardian, Al Jazeera
