A Saudi-led coalition attack on a residential area near the border with Saudi Arabia in Saada province on 9 March left two civilians dead and several others injured.

According to local media reports, coalition forces opened fire on the village without any provocation. The incident came just a few hours after three civilians, including an African migrant, were injured after being shot by coalition forces in another village in the same area.

Yemeni towns and villages located along the Saudi-Yemen border have for years been subjected to missiles and artillery attacks by the Saudi-led coalition. The attacks have led to significant casualties and destruction of infrastructure.

The Saudi-led coalition claims the attacks target members of the Yemeni Armed Forces who it accuses of using the residential areas to launch cross-border attacks. The Yemeni army has denied the accusations, saying the claims by the coalition are an attempt to justify attacks on civilians.

According to Article 8 of the Rome statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), any intentional attacks on civilians who are not taking part in the hostilities amount to war crimes.

The government of Yemen has on numerous occasions accused the international community and the United Nations (UN) of failing to investigate possible war crimes committed by the Saudi-led coalition.

In addition to killing civilians, the coalition also purposefully bombs essential facilities, such as hospitals and water treatment plants. This has led to an increase in the prevalence of diseases especially water-borne diseases, such as cholera and typhoid.

Saudi Arabia and its regional allies invaded Yemen in March 2015 with the aim of crushing the Ansarallah resistance movement.

The seven years of war on Yemen has killed more than 230,000 Yemenis and displaced more than one million others. It has triggered what the UN has described as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.