Five people were killed, five others wounded and one reported missing in U.S. airstrikes in the past 24 hours, the Houthi-run Health Ministry said on Thursday.
In Yemen's western province of Hodeidah, the strikes targeted a water project and its building in the district of Mansouria in central Hodeidah. The search for possible survivors under the rubble is underway.
"We are now in the Mansuriyah District of Hodeidah Province. This is the site that was bombed the previous day. The entire water company - including the water plant and the building housing its management -- has been destroyed. This was the only water supply facility in Mansuriyah. The U.S. and Israel bombing this place is an act of cowardice. This is a public service facility providing water to civilians. It supplies water to the people. Why did they do this?" said Amer Al-Amer, director of Mansuriyah District.
The U.S. military has resumed airstrikes on Houthi-held areas in northern Yemen since March 15 in a bid to deter the group from attacking Israeli targets, the U.S. Navy, and international shipping lanes in the region.
As of Tuesday, the death toll from the airstrikes has risen to 61, with 139 others injured, the Houthi group said Wednesday.
In addition, the U.S. military on Wednesday launched airstrikes on the Ras Isa area in Hodeidah, causing casualties; and on several locations in the northwestern provinces of Hajjah and Saada, with no casualties reported, according to Houthi media.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to continue striking the Houthis until they stop attacking U.S. warships.
The Houthis, who control much of northern Yemen, have been fighting the internationally recognized Yemeni government since 2014.
5 killed in latest US airstrikes in Yemen
5 killed in latest US airstrikes in Yemen
5 killed in latest US airstrikes in Yemen
5 killed in latest US airstrikes in Yemen
A high-level mediation team from the African Union (AU) Commission has been dispatched to Juba, capital of South Sudan, to try to ease the rising tensions between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar, and help resolve the current political crisis in the country.
Riek Machar and several senior officials have been detained since clashes erupted in January between the South Sudan People's Defense Forces and the opposition fighters.
Machar was accused of instigating violence in Nasir in the northern part of the country.
The mediation team says it plans to engage Machar, but that meeting is yet to take place.
The AU is urging South Sudanese political leaders to resolve the current disagreement through dialogue.
Machar heads the largest opposition group that has an armed wing in the country, known as SPLM/A-IO.
South Sudan's government says it's still investigating Machar for being allegedly involved in clashes between government troops and armed civilians affiliated to SPLM/A-IO in Nasir.
"The mandate of the RTGoNU (the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity) is simple; that we stop war, we form a revitalized government of national unity so that we return security, sustainable peace in the country," said Martin Elia Lomuro, South Sudan's Minister of Cabinet Affairs.
Meanwhile, Machar's party members are calling on president Kiir to order the release of their leader.
The group argues that the arrest of Machar means the 2018 peace deal which ended five years of violence in the country has partially collapsed.
The government reaffirms its commitment to the implementation of the 2018 peace deal.
It says Mr. Machar is in conflict with the law and that the implementation of the peace deal should not be used as cover to commit crime. However, until now, South Sudanese law enforcement agencies have not charged Machar with any offense in a court of law.
South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, signed a peace deal in 2018 that ended a civil war between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar. Nearly 400,000 people died in the civil war.
Relations between Kiir and Machar, who have dominated South Sudan's politics for decades, remain strained. The clashes and latest political tensions between the two leaders have unsettled many citizens and the international community.
AU dispatches Panel of Wise to address ongoing instability in South Sudan
