ADEN, Yemen, July 19 (Xinhua) -- Warplanes of the Saudi Arabia-led coalition hit Tuesday a camp of displaced Yemeni civilians in the southwestern province of Taiz, killing up to 20, Houthi-owned media outlets reported.
"Saudi airstrikes on camp for displaced Yemenis left some 20 dead, including women and children," the Houthis said through their official satellite channel Al Masirah.
The Houthis-affiliated TV channel didn't provide details or release footage of the area reportedly targeted by Saudi-led airstrikes.
Local residents told Xinhua that the airstrikes apparently targeted a displaced persons camp in Mawza district, where the coalition-backed forces have been trying to make ground advances against Houthis.
Earlier in the day, pro-government Yemeni forces launched a fresh major ground and air offensive against the Shiite Houthi group in Taiz, retaking key military positions from the rebels, according to local Yemeni officials.
Officials from the Fourth Regional Military Command said the military operation focused on the supply lines linking Taiz with the western port city of Hodyada, where the Shiite Houthi militants have a strong presence and powerful military bases.
Yemen has been suffering from a civil war and a Saudi-led military intervention for about two years.
The civil war began after the Houthi militants, with support of forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, ousted the UN-backed transitional government and occupied capital Sanaa in September 2014.
The legitimate government controls the south and some eastern parts, while the Houthi/Saleh alliance controls the other parts including the capital Sanaa.
The UN has sponsored peace talks between the warring factions several times, but they failed to reach any common ground.
The civil war has so far killed more than 10,000 people, half of them civilians, injured more than 35,000 others and displaced over two million, according to humanitarian agencies.
