Yemen rebels say civilians killed in Saudi airstrikes (Roundup)

Nov 5, 2009, 13:52 GMT

Sana'a, Yemen - A Yemeni Shiite rebel group said a number of civilians were killed after Saudi war planes Thursday shelled areas controlled by the group in north-western Yemen.

'Saudi air force carried out extensive raids on al-Malahid district and villages in Marran area of Saada province,' the media office of rebel leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi said in a statement.

The Saudi jets also bombarded a market place in the town of al- Hasama in al-Malahid, the e-mailed statement said, adding that 'the shelling is still ongoing now, and armless innocent civilians were killed.'

Yemen's Defence Ministry rejected the rebel claims saying they 'fabricated, false and unfounded.'

The ministry said the claim was an 'overt and naked attempt to drag (our) brothers in Saudi Arabia into the midst of the ongoing confrontations with them.'

It warned the rebels of the consequences of their 'reckless adventures.'

The reported Saudi raids come two days after clashes between the rebels, known as Houthis, and Saudi border guards that left a Saudi soldier and an insurgent killed and injured 11 Saudi soldiers and a rebel fighter.

According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), Tuesday's clashes erupted when gunmen were spotted near al-Dokhan mountain, in Jazan region, near the borders with Yemen.

'Infiltrators opened fire on Saudi security forces using various weapons,' SPA said.

The rebels said Wednesday that Saudi border guards sparked the clash by firing at a rebel car on the Yemeni side of the border.

'Saudi border guards opened fire at a car that belongs to us,' the group said in a statement. 'The Saudi army then began to fire intensively at the Yemeni territory.'

'We advise the Saudi regime again not to intervene in the ongoing war (between rebels and Yemeni troops) and not to involve in a direct confrontation with us,' added the statement.

The group, fighting the national army in north-western Yemen, accused Saudi Arabia earlier this week of allowing Yemeni forces to use its territories as a launchpad for attacking their positions on the border.

Houthis have frequently accused Saudi Arabia of facilitating the Yemeni army's operation against their bases on the border.