100 civilians killed a month in Yemen war, most by coalition: U.N.

Reuters
People ride a motorbike past a destroyed house in the southwestern city of Taiz, Yemen March 16, 2017. REUTERS/Anees Mahyoub

GENEVA (Reuters) - An average of 100 civilians a month are dying in Yemen's war which enters its third year this weekend, most killed by the Saudi-led coalition's air strikes and shelling, the United Nations human rights office said on Friday. In a statement marking the second anniversary on Sunday, it said it had confirmed 4,773 civilians killed and 8,272 injured in the conflict pitting Iran-allied Houthi rebels against the ousted Yemeni government backed by the Saudi-led Arab coalition. The latest victims included 32 Somali refugees and a Yemeni civilian killed by "shelling from a coalition warship" and shooting by an Apache helicopter in an attack on their boat off the coast a week ago, it said. A further 10 are missing. Civilians in Taiz were suffering "desperate shortages" of food and water due to Popular Committees allied to the Houthis who encircle the city and prevent aid deliveries, it said. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay, editing by Tom Miles)