Yemen: Significant damage from Houthi shelling of a mosque and school in Taiz

The ministry stated that the Houthi group shelled a mosque and a school in the village of Al-Najd in the Mashra'a Wa Hadnan district, south of Taiz, resulting in significant material damage.

The ministry did not clarify whether the shelling resulted in any deaths or injuries.

For its part, the official Yemeni News Agency "Saba" quoted a local source as saying that the shelling targeted the Omar Al-Tayyar mosque and school in the village with several shells.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthi group regarding what was reported by the Yemeni authorities.

These developments are part of a military escalation in Yemen that renewed last July, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries, as well as the displacement of more than a quarter of a million people, according to the United Nations.

Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition to support the legitimate government in Yemen against the Houthi group, which is accused of receiving Iranian support and has controlled the capital, Sanaa, and several governorates since September 2014.

The Houthis control most of the northern and western governorates, including Sanaa, Saada, Amran, Dhamar, Hodeidah, Ibb, Al-Mahwit, and Raymah, and maintain partial control in the governorates of Hajjah, Al-Bayda, Marib, Al-Jawf, Al-Dhale, and Taiz.

Meanwhile, government forces and their allies control the interim capital, Aden, and the governorates of Al-Mahra, Hadhramaut, Shabwa, and Abyan, as well as the majority of Lahj and Al-Dhale governorates, and parts of Taiz, Marib, Al-Jawf, Hajjah, and Saada.