Military, ministers and mayors killed in Yemen funeral massacre

Sanaa's mayor was among dozens of leading 'government' officials, officers and civilians killed during a Saudi-led coalition attack on a funeral hall in Yemen.
2 min read
12 October, 2016
More than 140 were killed in the attack on a funeral wake on Saturday [AFP]

 

A total of 62 military officials were confirmed killed or injured in Sanaa's deadly funeral attack on Saturday, including the capital's mayor, Abdulqader al-Hilal.

Thirty two military personnel were killed in the air raid, including eight major generals, nine generals and six colonels among others.

Houthi-allied minister of defence, Major General Hussain Khiran was also on the list, as was the rebel-group's minister of interior, General Omar al-Yafiy.

The country's former chief of military intelligence, Major General Abdulrahman al-Jaki, central security forces and special guards were also announced dead in the days following the attack.

Fifty-five bodies remain unidentified and thirty others are reported injured, sources said.

On Monday, the United Nations called for swift action to bring to justice the perpetrators of airstrikes on a funeral ceremony in the Yemeni capital that killed more than 140 people.

"We must do everything possible to ensure the authors of these heinous attacks face justice," UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in Paris after talks with French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault.

The envoy said the Saudi-led coalition must publish the results of its probe into the strikes, which also injured more than 525 people.

"We need to have the results of the investigation under way very quickly," he said.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the airstrikes on a funeral ceremony was a "heartless attack on civilians and an outrageous violation of international humanitarian law."

He said an independent body to probe rights violations in Yemen must be set up.

"There must be accountability for the appalling conduct of this entire war," Ban told reporters.

The attack was among the deadliest in Yemen since the Riyadh-led alliance launched its aerial campaign against the rebels last year.

The coalition, which initially denied any involvement, said on Sunday it would investigate the incident, after the US said it was reviewing support for the alliance.

"The coalition will immediately investigate this case along with... experts from the United States who participated in previous investigations," it said.

The alliance was already under intense international scrutiny over the civilian death toll in its Yemen operations.