ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- An explosion caused by a landmine laid previously by the Houthi rebels in the country's Red Sea port city of Hodeidah injured three farmers on Saturday, a government official told Xinhua.
"The Houthi-laid landmine exploded in an agricultural area in Tuhyata district of Hodeidah, partially destroying a tractor and injuring three farmers," the government source said on condition of anonymity.
He said the explosion occurred when the farmers were preparing the soil for cultivating crops.
The Yemeni government source blamed the Houthi rebels for planting landmines heavily in the agricultural areas and farms of Hodeidah during the fighting last year.
It claimed that fighters of the Houthi group had previously planted thousands of landmines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) before their withdrawal from different areas located along the country's western coast.
The Houthi-laid landmines and IEDs continue to pose a real threat to the civilians despite the ongoing efforts exerted by the experts of the mine-clearing projects in Yemen.
Previous reports by humanitarian organizations said that Yemen has become one of the largest landmine battlefields in the world since World War II.
The Iran-allied Houthi rebels seized the northern provinces including the capital Sanaa in late 2014, forcing Yemen's President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and his government into exile.
A coalition formed by Saudi Arabia and several other Arab countries intervened militarily in the Yemeni conflict to fight against the Houthis in March 2015, in response to an official request from Hadi to protect Yemen and roll back Iran's influence.
