DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis on Monday accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out airstrikes around the country, including the deadly bombardment of a prison, as the rebels pressed an offensive to seize territory near the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The rebels’ media said the attacks targeted Houthi positions across the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest country, which is divided between areas held by the Iran-backed group and those controlled by the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government.

Saba news agency, which is affiliated with the Houthi movement, reported seven people were killed by Saudi airstrikes on the prison in Al-Hazm in the north of Yemen, including one child visiting the facility.

Seven others were wounded in the strikes on the prison, the agency added, citing the health ministry in the Houthi-held Yemeni capital of Sanaa.

Footage shared by the rebel group of what they described as the damage to the prison located in Jawf province showed smoke rising from the blast site as rescue workers picked through rubble.

Earlier, Saba reported, “the Saudi enemy targeted the provinces of Jawf, Al-Bayda, Marib and Taiz with several airstrikes and cruise missiles.”

Days of fighting near the Red Sea coast have left more than 300 people dead and displaced hundreds of families as the Houthis try to capture........

© The Times of Israel