"Every few miles on a drive north of Yemen's capital, a charred hulk or massive bomb crater blocks the highway – the result of airstrikes by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition against the Houthi rebels who have taken over much of the country. While most of the destroyed vehicles appear to be tankers and cargo trucks, some are clearly local traffic, like a charred flatbed surrounded by dozens of dead goats. As we speed along the nearly deserted highway, we can hear the occasional roar of jets in the sky. Most of the Houthi checkpoints we pass are abandoned. It makes for nerve-wracking driving.
Since March, Houthis have launched attacks on southern Saudi Arabia from the mountainous province of Saada. In May, the Saudis declared the entire province a military target. Leaflets were dropped, telling the area's civilian population of nearly 1 million to flee. An all-out aerial assault ensued. Two reports published last week, by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have accused Saudi Arabia of "attacks that appeared to violate international humanitarian law" and "possible disproportionate or indiscriminate attacks."
A month later, Saada City is utterly devastated, its main roads lined with shattered buildings. A local activist led us through its deserted old market, where a 30-foot crater sits outside the gate of a damaged 1,200-year-old mosque. The airstrikes targeted homes, shopping malls, cold-storage facilities, car dealerships, restaurants and gas stations. At one pump we were told 17 people were killed and 49 injured while waiting in line to fuel up – a column of blackened cars still stood in a row. According to a UN satellite analysis conducted on May 17, a total of 1,171 structures in Saada have been damaged or destroyed by airstrikes. "
Since March, Houthis have launched attacks on southern Saudi Arabia from the mountainous province of Saada. In May, the Saudis declared the entire province a military target. Leaflets were dropped, telling the area's civilian population of nearly 1 million to flee. An all-out aerial assault ensued. Two reports published last week, by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have accused Saudi Arabia of "attacks that appeared to violate international humanitarian law" and "possible disproportionate or indiscriminate attacks."
A month later, Saada City is utterly devastated, its main roads lined with shattered buildings. A local activist led us through its deserted old market, where a 30-foot crater sits outside the gate of a damaged 1,200-year-old mosque. The airstrikes targeted homes, shopping malls, cold-storage facilities, car dealerships, restaurants and gas stations. At one pump we were told 17 people were killed and 49 injured while waiting in line to fuel up – a column of blackened cars still stood in a row. According to a UN satellite analysis conducted on May 17, a total of 1,171 structures in Saada have been damaged or destroyed by airstrikes. "
