Sanaa--Saudi-led coalition warplanes intensified raids on Yemen's capital Wednesday, as Washington confirmed a top US diplomat had met representatives of Iran-backed rebels to try to revive proposed Geneva peace talks.
The UN Security Council appealed for a new humanitarian ceasefire and peace talks as soon as possible to end fighting that has killed at least 2,000 people since March.
The 15-member council, backing an appeal by UN chief Ban Ki-moon, said in a unanimous statement it was "deeply disappointed" that the planned May 28 talks in Geneva were pushed back.
Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and its regional allies have been bombing the rebels since late March to try to restore Yemen's exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi to power.
Dozens of explosions rocked the capital as coalition jets pounded Sanaa for hours from early Wednesday, an AFP correspondent said.
The raids targeted several rebel arms depots, a pro-rebel military police camp and a renegade troop base, according to residents.
The bombing shook nearby buildings and sent flames shooting into the air as debris rained down on houses in the surrounding area.
At least three people were killed and 11 wounded in the raids and subsequent explosions, a medical source told AFP.
The coalition also struck positions in the northern provinces of Jawf, Saada and Hajja near the border with Saudi Arabia, as well as in the third city of Taez and the southern province of Daleh.
The Huthis have allied with renegade troops loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who ruled Yemen for three decades before stepping down in February 2012 after a year-long uprising.
AFP
