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Dozens killed in Saudi air strike on bus in Yemen

DOZENS of people, many of them children, were killed by a Saudi-led coalition air strike which targeted a bus as it travelled through a market in northern Yemen today.

The health ministry claimed at least 43 people were killed in the attack, with Red Cross spokesman Johannes Bruwer confirming that most of the dead were under 10 years old.

“Under international humanitarian law civilians must be protected during conflict,” he said.

The coalition, for which Britain and the US provide weapons and tactical support, claimed that the air strike was “legitimate,” with Colonel Turki al-Malki saying it “conformed to international and humanitarian laws.”

The bus had been travelling through a busy market in Yemen’s Saada province when it came under fire. 

Unicef said it was “very concerned with the initial reports of children being killed.”

The coalition has consistently denied that it deliberately targets civilians and infrastructure but rights groups say its actions amount to war crimes.

At least 10,000 have been killed since March 2015 as the Saudi-led coalition seeks to reinstall the government of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who was ousted by Houthi rebels in 2014.

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