An air strike by the Saudi-led coalition on the Yemeni capital’s old quarter killed five people Friday as it destroyed homes in the centuries-old heritage site UNESCO calls a ‘jewel’ of Islamic culture. Sanaa’s old city has been inhabited for more than 2,500 years and was a major centre for the propagation of Islam, boasting more than 100 mosques, 14 public baths and more than 6,000 houses built before the 11th century. It was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1986. Residents said the pre-dawn strike was the first direct hit on old Sanaa since the launch of the bombing campaign against Huthi rebels in late March. A missile hit the Qassimi neighbourhood without exploding, but killed five residents, including a woman and a child, and destroyed three three-storey houses, medics and witnesses said. The target of the raid was not immediately clear amid conflicting statements

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