Sunday, 05 September 2010 16:40

SADAA, 30 Oct — At least 31 civilians, mostly women and children were killed Thursday in an airstrike on the northern war-torn district of Razeh in Sadaa.  The rebel group spokesperson, Muhammad Abdul-Salam condemned what he dubbed “the massacre,” saying “government warplanes are targeting civilians and this constitutes a war crime.”  “More than 7 sorties bombed the entire village of Sadan al-Farq in the area of Bani al-Nadir,” Abdul-Salam told the independent news website, News Yemen in a phone conversation late on Thursday, adding “women and children are still under the rubble, 31 bodies were pulled out while 20 others were wounded,” stressing “this is a disaster and will have its consequences.”  He said the rebels were “willing to facilitate access of journalists and organizations to the area.  We want to show them the implications of the war crimes perpetrated by the state and we will guarantee their safety.” In other news, the mouthpiece of Yemen’s Socialist Party (YSP), Aleshteraki website Friday quoted “trusted sources,” as saying “President Saleh has asked the head of a state-sponsored committee setup to investigate the killing of 88 civilians in Harf Sufian last month to change the outcome of the investigation,” adding “the President asked him to claim the dead were Huthi rebels.”  The civilians were believed to have been killed in military airstrikes.  Meanwhile, the military Thursday announced the control of “the rebels last stronghold in al-Haska mountain in addition to six other outposts used by the insurgents,” the military online website, 26-September said quoting a military source.  “Security agencies captured 18 rebels in the city of Sadaa while six other rebels were killed,” it added.