Deadly attacks by Iran-backed Houthis on Saudi airports highlight widening fallout from Yemen conflict

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By AFP | Posted by TOE Saudi authorities said Wednesday three people were killed in attacks on two of the kingdom’s international airports, including in the capital Riyadh, after Yemen’s Houthis claimed to have fired on both transport hubs. The Iran-backed Houthis have claimed a wave of attacks on Saudi civilian infrastructure in recent weeks, which came as Riyadh-backed forces pressed a counter-offensive against the group’s territorial gains. Since Yemen’s civil war reignited in July, more than 200,000 people have been displaced within the country, the United Nations said Wednesday. The Houthis claimed an attack on Riyadh’s main airport, while the Saudi-led coalition — which backs Yemen’s internationally recognised government in its fight against the group — vowed retaliation. The Houthis later claimed another attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Thursday and repeated a warning — “...
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Fighting between armed sectarian groups in restive northwestern Pakistan kills at least 37 people

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By RIAZ KHAN, Associated Press

Fighting between armed Sunni and Shiite groups in northwestern Pakistan killed at least 37 people and injured 25 others, a senior police officer from the region said Saturday.

The overnight violence was the latest to rock Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and comes days after a deadly gun ambush killed 42 people.

Shiite Muslims make up about 15% of the 240 million people in Sunni-majority Pakistan, which has a history of sectarian animosity between the communities.

Although the two groups generally live together peacefully, tensions remain, especially in Kurram.

The station house police officer in Kurram, Saleem Shah, said armed men in Bagan and Bacha Kot torched shops, houses and government property.

Intense gunfire was ongoing between the Alizai and Bagan tribes in the Lower Kurram area.

“Educational institutions in Kurram are closed due to the severe tension. Both sides are targeting each other with heavy and automatic weapons,” said Shah.

Videos shared with The Associated Press showed a market engulfed by fire and orange flames piercing the night sky. Gunfire can also be heard.

A government delegation arrived in the city of Parachinar on Saturday to defuse the crisis. A spokesman for the provincial government, Muhammad Ali Saif, said the delegation was meeting tribal elders.

“Detailed meetings were held with Shiite leaders and positive discussions took place to address the issues,” he told the media. “In the next phase, meetings will be held with Sunni leaders. Our priority is to secure a cease-fire between both sides and establish a lasting peace.”

The location of Thursday’s convoy attack was also targeted by armed men, who marched on the area.

Survivors of the gun ambush said assailants emerged from a vehicle and sprayed buses and cars with bullets. Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack and police have not identified a motive.

Dozens of people from the district’s Sunni and Shiite communities have been killed since July, when a land dispute erupted in Kurram that later turned into general sectarian violence.



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/FXxPUWJ

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