Yemeni deputy chief of staff succumbs to wounds

By Mehmet Nuri Ucar

ADEN, Yemen (AA) - Yemen's deputy chief of staff died Sunday at a hospital he was being treated in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to governmental sources.

Gen. Saleh Zindani suffered a head injury in a drone strike by the Houthi rebels during a military parade last month.

Yemen has been wracked by violence since 2014, when the Shia Houthi group overran much of the country and the crisis escalated in 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition launched a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

Saudi Arabia and Sunni allies accuse the Houthis of acting as a proxy force for Shia Iran. Tens of thousands of people, including civilians, are believed to have been killed and the UN estimates that around 14 million Yemenis are at risk of famine.