Visuals from the aftermath of the attack (Image Source: X@YemenNetworkRF)
Some sources suggest at least 35 are still trapped under the rubble of the collapsed facility. Government-aligned forces have also launched counterattacks in Taiz and Hodeidah after the Houthis began an offensive aimed at gaining control of the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait.
The strike hit the Central Corrective Facility in al-Jawf province, near Yemen’s border with Saudi Arabia, Houthi-run Health Ministry spokesperson Anees al-Asbahi said. Houthi-run Al Masirah TV broadcast footage it said showed the aftermath of the strike, including a collapsed building and people searching through the rubble. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree spoke to Al Jazeera, accusing Riyadh of “committing massacres” in al-Jawf and said the Houthis had shot down four Saudi reconnaissance drones in the previous 24 hours. The targets attacked include the international airport in the city of Abha, King Khalid Air Base and facilities of Saudi oil giant Aramco in the cities of Abha and Jizan, according to their media outlet Ansar Allah.
At least seven others, including a woman and child, were wounded. Saudi Arabia has not commented on the Houthi’s statements yet. He also claimed Houthi forces had used ballistic missiles to target Saudi supply trucks carrying military equipment at a border crossing in Yemen’s Hadramout province. A few hours after the attack on the correctional facility, the Houthis claimed that they attacked several targets in southwestern Saudi Arabia using missiles and drones. The accusations came as fighting between the Houthis and Yemen’s internationally recognised government has intensified in recent weeks. Hundreds of people have reportedly been killed in the latest fighting. Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Monday accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out an air strike on a prison in the northern city of al-Hazm, killing at least seven people, including a child. Government forces said on Sunday they had made territorial gains in several provinces, including al-Jawf, Bayda, Dahle and Marib. UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg on Monday called on all sides to halt hostilities and exercise maximum restraint, warning that the escalation could spiral into a full-scale war.