ADEN, Yemen, April 5 (Xinhua) -- At least five Yemeni women prisoners were killed Sunday when a shelling attack targeted the central prison in the southwestern province of Taiz, a security official told Xinhua.
The local security source based in the city said on condition of anonymity that "a number of Houthi-fired shells indiscriminately struck the women's section at the central jail in Taiz province."
He confirmed that the shells killed at least five women prisoners and wounded more than 20 others at the scene.
The source accused the Houthi fighters stationed in Taiz's western part of launching an indiscriminate shelling attack against the city's central jail.
Meanwhile, the government's health department in Taiz confirmed that "the Houthis committed a horrific crime by bombing the women's section of the central prison in Taiz."
The city center of Taiz is currently under the control of the Yemeni government, while the outskirts of the city and areas in the countryside of the province are still witnessing armed confrontations between pro-government forces and the Houthi rebels.
The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since late 2014, when the Houthi rebels overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa.
