Airstrike on MSF Hospital in Yemen Kills At Least 11: Aid Group
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A Saudi-led coalition airstrike hit a hospital operated by Medecins Sans Frontieres in northern Yemen, killing at least 11 people and wounding 19, the aid group said.
A Reuters witness at the scene of the attack in the Abs district of Hajjah province said medics could not immediately evacuate the wounded because war planes continued to fly over the area and emergency workers feared more bombings.
"The location of the hospital was well known, and the hospital's GPS coordinates were repeatedly shared with all parties to the conflict, including the Saudi-led coalition," the aid group also known as Doctors Without Borders, said in a statement.
It said one of its staff members was among those killed when an aerial bomb hit the hospital compound, also killing 10 patients.
"This is the fourth attack against an MSF facility in less than 12 months," the statement said.
"Even with the recent United Nations resolution calling for an end to attacks on medical facilities and high-level declarations of commitment to international humanitarian law, nothing seems to be done to make parties involved in the conflict in Yemen to respect medical staff and patients."
A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Another air attack hit what MSF described as a school in neighboring Sa’ada province on Saturday, killing 10 children. The coalition said the bombing had targeted a training facility run by Yemen's dominant Houthi movement.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the airstrike on Sunday and called for an investigation, which the coalition said it would conduct, according to a statement sent to Reuters.
Dozens of airstrikes have hit civilians in Yemen since a coalition of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia began military operations in March 2015 to restore power to fugitive former President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.