ALBAWABA- In a horrifying act of violence during one of Islam’s holiest occasions, a mentally disturbed gunman opened fire inside a mosque in Yemen’s Al-Bayda province on Saturday evening, killing more than 12 people and injuring several others.
The attack occurred as worshippers were reciting Eid al-Adha chants shortly after sunset prayers, local sources told Yemen Future.
The shooting took place at Hammat Okoos Mosque in the village of Qarn Al-Asad, located in the Al-Arsh district of Rada’a city, which is under the control of the Houthi group.
According to eyewitnesses, the attacker began his rampage by targeting two young men at a nearby grocery store before storming the mosque and unleashing gunfire on congregants immediately after prayer.
Among the dead was Ahmed Abdrabbeh Al-Aji, the owner of the grocery store, along with one of his friends from the Rayashiyah area.
A 12-year-old boy, known as “Walad Al-Ansi,” was wounded, along with a qat vendor who was inside the mosque at the time of the attack.
Witnesses said the mosque’s loudspeakers were still active during the shooting, amplifying the cries of the wounded and sending shockwaves through the neighborhood.
The attacker was apprehended roughly an hour and a half later. The injured were transported to Dhamar Hospital, where medical officials warned the death toll could rise due to critical injuries.
This tragedy adds to the mounting toll Yemenis have endured in a country shattered by a decade-long conflict.
Since the Houthis seized power in September 2014, followed by a Saudi-led military intervention in March 2015, Yemen has faced relentless war and foreign interference.
The conflict has devastated the country’s economy, fractured its society, and left millions struggling to survive under unbearable humanitarian conditions.
