SANAA: The death toll from airstrikes that hit homes in a village east of Yemen's capital, Sanaa, has risen to 44, most of them women and children, according to Houthi-run health authorities.
The strikes hit al-Shariya village in the Bani Hushaysh district on Saturday. Anees al-Asbahi, spokesperson for the Houthi-run Health Ministry, said 40 people were wounded, including eight children and nine women.
Among those killed were 21 children and 10 women, he said. Rescue teams were continuing to search the rubble for survivors and missing people.
Al-Asbahi blamed Saudi Arabia for the attack. Saudi Arabia had not publicly confirmed responsibility, and the reported toll could not be independently verified.
The strikes came a day after an attack on a market in southern Yemen killed at least 30 people, according to Houthi authorities. The Houthis and Yemen's Saudi-backed government forces blamed each other for that attack.
The latest violence marks a sharp escalation in fighting between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, following the collapse of a United Nations-brokered truce in July. The 2022 agreement had brought a period of relative calm to the conflict.
Since fighting resumed, the Houthis have stepped up missile and drone attacks on Saudi infrastructure, while Saudi Arabia has carried out airstrikes in support of its Yemeni allies.
The renewed conflict has also unfolded alongside the wider confrontation involving the United States and Iran. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that President Donald Trump preferred a diplomatic solution but described some of Iran's demands as unrealistic.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei rejected Rubio's remarks on Monday, defending Tehran's demands, which include sanctions relief, the unfreezing of Iranian assets and an end to hostilities across the region.
The conflict has raised concerns over the security of two key maritime routes, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Strait of Hormuz, which are important for global shipping and energy supplies.
With input from media reports.