US Warplanes Carry Out 17 Strikes in Yemen 

A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
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US Warplanes Carry Out 17 Strikes in Yemen 

A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)

Houthi media in Yemen reported Wednesday at least 17 strikes in Saada and Amran, blaming the United States for the attacks.

The group's Ansarollah website said US warplanes carried out "aggressive air raids... causing material damage to citizens' property", but gave no details of casualties.

Washington on March 15 announced a military offensive against the Iranian-backed Houthis, promising to use overwhelming force until the group stopped firing on vessels in the key shipping routes of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

That day saw a wave of US air strikes that officials said killed senior Houthi leaders, and which the militants' health ministry said killed 53 people.

Since then, Houthi-held parts of Yemen have witnessed near-daily attacks that the group has blamed on the United States, with the group announcing the targeting of US military ships and Israel.

The Houthis began targeting shipping vessels after the start of the Gaza war, claiming solidarity with Palestinians, but paused their campaign when a ceasefire took effect in Gaza in January.

Earlier this month, they threatened to renew attacks in the vital maritime trade route over Israel's aid blockade on the Palestinian territory, triggering the first US strikes on Yemen since President Donald Trump took office in January.

Last week, Trump threatened to annihilate the Houthis and warned Tehran against continuing to aid the group.



Syrian Govt Visits Notorious Al-Hol Camp for First Time Since Kurds Deal

A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
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Syrian Govt Visits Notorious Al-Hol Camp for First Time Since Kurds Deal

A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)

A Syrian government delegation visited a notorious camp in the Kurdish-administered northeast that hosts families of suspected ISIS group members, the new authorities' first visit, both sides said Saturday.

Kurdish-run camps and prisons in the northeast hold tens of thousands of people, many with alleged or perceived links to ISIS, more than five years after the group’s territorial defeat in Syria.

Kurdish administration official Sheikhmous Ahmed said "a tripartite meeting was held on Saturday in the Al-Hol camp" that included a government delegation, another from the US-led international coalition fighting ISIS, and Kurdish administration members.

Al-Hol is northeast Syria's largest camp, housing some 37,000 people from dozens of countries, including 14,500 Iraqis, in dire conditions.

Discussions involved "establishing a mechanism for removing Syrian families from Al-Hol camp", Ahmed said.

The visit comes more than two months after interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, head of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, agreed to integrate the Kurds' civil and military institutions into the national government.

The deal also involved guaranteeing the return of all Syrians to their hometowns and villages.

No progress has yet been reported on the administration's integration into the new government.

In Damascus, interior ministry spokesperson Noureddine al-Baba told reporters Al-Hol is "part of the agreement" signed by Sharaa and Abdi.

He said the issue requires "a comprehensive societal solution for the families who are victims" of ISIS.

In February, the Kurdish administration said that in coordination with the United Nations, it aimed to empty camps in the northeast of thousands of displaced Syrians and Iraqi refugees, including suspected relatives of extremists, by the end of the year.

Al-Hol includes a high-security section for families of foreign ISIS fighters.

Ahmed said the fate of those families "is linked to the countries that have nationals (in the camp), and to the international coalition", which supported Kurdish-led forces who fought ISIS, detaining its fighters and their relatives.

The Kurds have repeatedly called on countries to repatriate their citizens, but foreign governments have allowed home only a trickle, fearing security threats and a domestic political backlash.

It is unclear who will administer prisons holding thousands of ISIS fighters in the northeast, with Abdi saying in February the new authorities wanted them under Damascus's control.