Saudi planes strike Yemen’s capital ahead of Geneva talks

Air strikes caused large explosions before dawn and hit locations south and west of the city of Sanaa.

Sanaa – Warplanes from a Saudi-led coalition bombarded Yemen’s capital Sanaa overnight, a Reuters witness said, as the country’s warring factions prepared for talks due to start in Geneva on Monday.

Air strikes caused large explosions before dawn and hit locations south and west of the city as part of the coalition’s nearly 12-week campaign to target the Houthi militia and army forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The talks hosted by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon are aimed at finding a political solution to the fighting that has caused thousands of deaths in Yemen, but it was not clear if the opposing factions would meet each other.

Delegates will instead meet initially in separate rooms for talks with UN officials, who will try to bring them closer together with the ultimate aim of getting them around the same table.