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The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said Saturday one of its warplanes was shot down over a mountainous northern province while providing air support to government forces fighting the country’s rebels.
The Houthi rebels said they shot down the plane with an advanced ground-to-air missile. Saudi Arabia’s state-run news agency quoted Col. Turki al-Maliki, a spokesman for the coalition, as saying the Tornado warplane belonging to Saudi Arabia’s air force was shot down over the province of Jawf late Friday. The report did not say whether there were causalities or provide further details.
The Yemen conflict began with the 2014 takeover of the capital Sanaa by the Houthis, who control much of the country’s north along the border with Saudi Arabia. A Saudi-led military coalition allied with Yemen’s internationally recognized government has been fighting the Iranian-backed Houthis since 2015.
In a relentless campaign, Saudi-led airstrikes have hit schools, hospitals and wedding parties and killed thousands of Yemeni civilians. The Houthis have used drones and missiles to attack Saudi Arabia.
The war has killed over 100,000 people and created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, leaving millions suffering from food and medical shortages.
Source: Associated Press