A US drone strike has killed three people in Yemen’s southern province of al-Bayda, tribal sources say.
The sources said the pilotless aircraft targeted suspected al-Qaeda-linked militants in Manasseh area. While local sources say the victims were al-Qaeda-linked militants, officials have yet to comment on the report.
The attack is said to be the first US airstrike against militants in Yemen since Houthi fighters took control of the capital Sana’a. Scores of Yemenis have lost their lives in similar attacks over the past few months.
The US administration claims that its unmanned aircraft attacks target al-Qaeda militants, but local sources say civilians have been the main victims of the non-UN-sanctioned airstrikes.
Last October, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said US killer drone strikes in Yemen had led to the deaths of many civilians over the past years in a blatant violation of international law.
In February, the rights group called on Washington to investigate a fatal drone strike on a wedding ceremony in Yemen in December. HRW said in a report, dubbed “A Wedding That Became a Funeral: US Drone Attack on Marriage Procession in Yemen,” that the December 12, 2013 attack killed a dozen men and wounded at least 15 others, including the bride.
