Saudi-led coalition airstrikes kill 8 in Yemen after Houthis' cross-border attack

Sanaa, March 27 (IANS) At least eight people were killed and three others injured after airstrikes launched by the Saudi-led coalition attacked a building of Houthi-controlled insurance authority in Yemen's capital Sanaa, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV has reported.

The coalition airstrikes conducted early Saturday morning, which came a day after the Houthi militia launched drone and missile attacks on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, damaged guards' quarters in the building courtyard, Xinhua news agency reported.

The coalition also launched airstrikes against the al-Hafa military camp in eastern Sanaa and fuel tanks of the Yemeni national oil company in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah in western Yemen, according to al-Masirah TV.

The coalition "carried out airstrikes against the sources of Houthi threats in Sanaa and Hodeidah," Al-Arabiya TV, which is owned by Saudi Arabia, quoted a coalition statement as saying, without specifying names of the targets.

On Friday, the Houthi militia claimed responsibility for cross-border attacks on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, the third such attack against Saudi oil facilities in less than a week.

According to Al-Arabiya TV, the Houthi attack caused fires in the Aramco oil facility in the Saudi Red Sea port city of Jeddah, as well as some damage in facilities in other Saudi cities. No casualties were reported.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Houthi militia vowed to launch more attacks against important targets in Saudi Arabia to break the Saudi-led coalition's blockade on the Yemeni ports controlled by the Houthi militia.

The escalation came after the Houthi militia lost several strategic districts in the oil-rich provinces of Marib and Shabwa in central Yemen in the past two months, after deadly battles against the coalition-backed Yemeni government forces.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi militia seized control of several northern provinces and forced the Saudi-backed Yemeni government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of the capital Sanaa.