91 killed due to rain-triggered floods in Yemen's rebel-held areas

Yemeni rebels have said 91 people have been killed by recent flash floods, triggered by heavy rain, in areas under their control in the north of the war-devastated country.

At least 140 buildings collapsed and 5,699 others were damaged due to flooding, Talaat al-Sharjabi, a spokesman for a rebel-linked humanitarian council, said.

At least 24,624 families have also been affected by floods in different provinces, the official added without elaborating, according to the rebel mouthpiece al-Masirah television.

The annual rainy season in Yemen usually runs until August, reports dpa news agency.

Yemen has been embroiled in a disastrous power struggle since 2014 between government forces, supported by a Saudi Arabia-led coalition, and Iran-linked Houthi rebels.

The UN considers Yemen's conflict a humanitarian disaster that has pushed the country to the brink of famine.

The war has taken a heavy toll on infrastructures in the impoverished country.

Earlier this month, Yemen's warring sides agreed for the third time to renew a UN-brokered truce, for two more months.

--IANS

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