Saudi-led Coalition Strikes School Bus In Yemen, Killing At Least 29 Children

Dozens of students were returning from a summer camp when their driver paused to grab a something at a market in Yemen's Saada province. It was there, as the students sat waiting to resume their journey home on Thursday, that a Saudi-led coalition airstrike hit their school bus.

At least 29 children under the age of 15, some as young as 6 years old, were killed in the attack, according to the Red Cross.
Saudi Arabia, the driving force behind a coalition of its Arab neighbors, saw no reason to apologize, however. In a statement released through the state-run Saudi Press Agency, Riyadh called the airstrike a "legitimate military action" conducted in accordance with international law.

Houthi media broadcast what appears to be graphic scenes of the aftermath, depicting children drenched in blood and burned black by the blast. They wail in pain as medics attempt to treat them, standing beside boys missing limbs and gazing on with shell-shocked stares.

The frame then hovers over what appears to be a pile of bloodied bodies, unmoving.

Asked about the airstrike by the U.S.-backed coalition, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert told reporters "we are certainly concerned."

"We call on the Saudi-led coalition to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the incident," she said.
Thursday's attack marks a grim milestone in a war that lately has seen yet another escalation, as coalition-backed Yemeni government forces have made a recent push to reclaim the key port city of Hodeidah from rebels.