United Nations Denounces Fatal Air Strike In Yemen, Says "Escalation Needs To Stop"

United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres denounced the airstrike that killed dozens of people in Yemen.

The attacks were allegedly piloted by a Saudi-led affiliation fighting Houthi rebels, although the country denies any involvement. The strike targeted a detention center that was housing migrants in the city of Saada.

The U.N. chief “calls for prompt, effective and transparent investigations into these incidents to ensure accountability” Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Three children were killed in Hodeidah according to the humanitarian organization Save the Children. The BBC reports that a precise death toll is not clear at the moment.

"There are many bodies still at the scene of the air strike, many missing people," Yemen MSF (Médecins Sans Frontière) chief Ahmed Mahat told AFP. "It is impossible to know how many people have been killed. It seems to have been a horrific act of violence.

Coalition forces led by Saudi have been violently engaging with the Houthi group in Yemen since 2015, and over 10,000 children have reportedly been killed in consequence.

"This escalation needs to stop," Guterres said at a news conference, as reported by Reuters.