Strikes on Yemen Market Kill at Least 30, Houthis Say
Are coalition airstrikes slaughtering Yemeni civilians in crowded markets or is a losing militia firing ballistic missiles and blaming warplanes?
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Above: A man stands before a destroyed building in the aftermath of a reported missile attack on a residential neighborhood in Taiz in western Yemen on Oct. 20. Image credit: Ahmad Al-Basha/AFP/Getty Images
The Facts
- Airstrikes hit a market in Yemen's Taiz province on Friday, killing at least 30 people and wounding eight, Houthi health officials said. It would be among the deadliest attacks since fighting with Saudi-backed government forces resumed.
- Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said three airstrikes hit al-Hadara market around 7 a.m., blaming Saudi Arabia and saying warplanes flew from the Khamis Mushait base. Saudi Arabia's information ministry did not immediately comment.
- Meanwhile, Yemen's military spokesman, Majed Al-Nuzaili, accused the Houthis of firing a ballistic missile at the market Friday and called the attack "a war crime," while local authorities in Taiz said no airstrikes had been carried out there.
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The Spin
Establishment-critical narrative
Bombing a crowded market from a fighter jet is a war crime, no matter how it gets spun. Airstrikes pounding Taiz, Saada, Al Jawf and Al Bayda are hitting homes and civilian property far more than any military target, and the death toll keeps climbing. Nothing about an air campaign that leaves shoppers dead in the rubble can be called defense.
Pro-establishment narrative
Lobbing a ballistic missile into a packed market is the calling card of a militia that keeps losing on the battlefield and punishes shoppers instead. No warplanes were over Waziyah, so pinning this slaughter on the coalition is just cover for another atrocity. Drying up the money and weapons pipeline is the only thing that will stop the killing.
