ADEN: The coalition fighting in Yemen destroyed an Ansar Allah telecommunication system used to control drones, Saudi State TV reported on Monday after the coalition asked civilians in Yemeni ministries in the capital Sanaa to immediately evacuate.
The bombing targeted a ground station for satellites in the vicinity of the telecommunication ministry in northern Sanaa, residents said.
Later on Monday, Ansar Allah-run TV Al Masirah reported a coalition attack targeting the telecommunication ministry, destroying the TeleYemen telecoms company building and damaging a neighbouring building.
The coalition said the Ansar Allah use ministry headquarters to “launch hostile operations,” and as a response a site linked to the latest attack on Saudi Arabia’s Abha international airport would be destroyed.
Twelve people were injured at the airport in an Ansar Allah drone attack on Thursday.
Ansar Allah forces have sent drones and fired missiles into Saudi Arabia during the seven-year conflict, and recently fired missiles at the United Arab Emirates capital. The coalition has retaliated with air strikes inside Yemen.
The coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 after the Ansar Allah ousted the internationally recognised government.
“We have destroyed a communication system used to operate drone control stations,” the coalition was quoted as saying by the official Saudi news agency SPA.
“The Ansar Allah are using the Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology in Sanaa for hostile operations,” it added.
An AFP correspondent in Sanaa confirmed coalition air strikes had targeted several areas of the capital around the ministry.
It was not immediately possible to determine if there were any casualties.
It was the first time the coalition has targeted a civilian ministry, having so far only attacked the defence ministry.
“The Ansar Allah are using state ministries to launch hostile operations,” the coalition said. The conflict has seen an escalation in recent months as the coalition has stepped up anti-Ansar Allah offensives.
For their part, the fighters have also increased attacks on Saudi Arabia and its fellow coalition member the UAE. – Reuters/AFP
