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Mokha, Yemen bomb kills photojournalist, at least five others

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Wednesday, January 30, 2019

A bombing was yesterday reported to have killed Abu Dhabi TV photojournalist Ziad al-Sharabi in the Red Sea port town of Mokha, Yemen. At least five other civilians reportedly also died in last night's attack; around twenty more, including colleague Faisal al-Thubhani, were injured.

Mokha from file, viewed across the Red Sea.
Image: tower10 via Panoramio.

The bomb was placed on a motorcycle in a market, stated Minister of Information Moammar al-Eryani, and was left outside a restaurant. No claims of responsibility were reported yesterday, but the general manager of Abu Dhabi Media, Dr Ali bin Tamim, attributed the bombing to Houthi rebels. Similar attributions of responsibility were made by state news firm Saba and al-Eryani.

Tamim claimed Houthis have attacked journalists previously. The Committee to Protect Journalists reports sixteen other journalist deaths in the nation since 2015. According to al-Eryani, the rebels are backed by Iran.

Mokha is generally less affected by violence than other parts of Yemen, since it was recaptured from Houthis in 2017. It is host to an anti-Houthi, pro-government coalition fighting the Houthis. Yemen has been experiencing civil war since the capital, Sanaa, fell under Houthi control in 2014. At present, the United Nations is attempting a peacekeeping mission.

Expressions of condolences have come from social media users, Sky News Arabia producer Jamal al-Harbi, and al-Eryani.


Sources