Sanaa (AFP) – Yemenis on Sunday recounted their panic and terror as the first US attacks under President Donald Trump struck rebel-held areas, killing dozens and wounding more than 100.
A "horrific explosion" rocked the capital, Sanaa, late on Saturday during suhoor, the night-time meal during the holy month of Ramadan, one resident said.
"The house shook, the windows shattered, and my family and I were terrified," father-of-two Ahmed, who did not want to give his full name, told AFP.
"I've been living in Sanaa for 10 years, hearing shelling throughout the war. By God, I've never experienced anything like this before."
The Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who control much of the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since 2015.
The US strikes were aimed at preventing a resurgence of months of attacks on the vital Red Sea shipping lane during the Israel-Hamas war.
"This is the most scared I've been since the beginning of the war," said Malik, 43, who has three children.
"Yesterday's shelling in Al-Jiraf (northern Sanaa) was absolutely terrifying: six strikes in a row.
"My children were screaming and crying in my arms. It's the first time I've ever said the Shahada," he said, referring to the prayer that is recited before death.
"I was waiting for one of these missiles to hit our house."
Attacks on Sanaa and Saada, the birthplace of the Huthi movement in Yemen's rugged northern mountains, and elsewhere killed 31 and wounded 101, according to the rebels' health ministry.
Footage from Huthi media showed children and a woman among those being treated in a hospital emergency room, including a dazed girl with blackened legs wrapped in bandages.
Late on Saturday, a plume of white smoke had risen over Sanaa after explosions rocked the northern district of the capital.
However, the Huthis sealed off areas around the blast sites, making it impossible to gauge the true scale of the destruction.
"This is the point of no return, and from now on, it's gloves off between the Huthis and CENTCOM," he said, referring to the regional US military command.
Amal, 29, who lives with her mother in Sanaa, said Saturday's attacks were "terrifying... windows were shattered and the walls of the house shook".
But she added: "We've witnessed hundreds of raids, most of them in the same areas.
"Several military operations against the Huthis have been announced, but they've only added more casualties, most of them civilians.
"The homes and locations of the leaders are well-known, but the victims are always civilians."