Floods kill 91 in Yemen's rebel-held areas

Sanaa, Aug 15 (IANS) Yemeni rebels have said 91 people have been killed by recent flash floods, triggered by heavy rain, in areas under their control in the north of the war-devastated country.

At least 140 buildings collapsed and 5,699 others were damaged due to flooding, Talaat al-Sharjabi, a spokesman for a rebel-linked humanitarian council, said.

At least 24,624 families have also been affected by floods in different provinces, the official added without elaborating, according to the rebel mouthpiece al-Masirah television.

The annual rainy season in Yemen usually runs until August, reports dpa news agency.

Yemen has been embroiled in a disastrous power struggle since 2014 between government forces, supported by a Saudi Arabia-led coalition, and Iran-linked Houthi rebels.

The UN considers Yemen's conflict a humanitarian disaster that has pushed the country to the brink of famine.

The war has taken a heavy toll on infrastructures in the impoverished country.

Earlier this month, Yemen's warring sides agreed for the third time to renew a UN-brokered truce, for two more months.