A Houthi supporter waves the Yemeni flag during an anti government protest in Sanaa. Photo: Mohammed Hamoud/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.
A ballistic missile attack believed to have been carried out by Houthi rebels killed at least 79 troops and wounded 81 others at a mosque in a Yemeni training camp late Saturday, the AP reports.
The big picture: The training camp is located in the central province of Marib — an oil-rich area approximately 70 miles east of Sanaa, the Houthi-controlled capital. Marib is under the jurisdiction of the Saudi-led coalition, which is supported by the U.S.
Why it matters: The attacks marks a military escalation that followed a rare period of stability in Yemen's long-running civil war, which has caused one of the worst humanitarian crises on the planet.
- Yemen's internationally-recognized president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Had, condemned the attack as an act of "blatant aggression" that showcases the Houthis' "unwillingness" to find peace.
- A spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces said the attack would "answered harshly," with coalition forces reporting Sunday that they launched "massive assaults" on Houthi targets northeast of the capital.
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