MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen's government against the Houthi rebels is investigating reports of civilian casualties caused by its airstrikes and is working to minimize them, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir said Thursday.
"We do our best to minimize civilian casualties. We do our best to investigate when we have reports of these, and we have investigated them. And we review our measures and procedures to ensure that we minimize them," Jubeir said at a joint press conference with US Secretary of State John Kerry after a meeting between the two diplomats.
He added that the Houthi rebels, also known as the Ansar Allah movement, have not taken similar steps to prevent civilian deaths.
Yemen has been engulfed in a military conflict between the government headed by Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and Houthi rebels, the country’s main opposition force. The Houthis are backed by army units loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Since March 2015, the Saudi-led coalition of mostly Persian Gulf countries has been carrying out airstrikes against the Houthis at Hadi's request despite a ceasefire agreed shortly before.
