Yemeni ambulance
© AFP Photo/Saleh al-ObeidiArmed supporters of Yemen's separatist Southern Movement stand next to an ambulance, reportedly targeted by forces loyal to the Shiite Huthi rebels, in the Mansura district of the the southern port city of Aden on April 4, 2015
Yemeni rebels made new gains in battleground southern city Aden Sunday as a Saudi-led coalition trying to halt their advance faced growing calls for a humanitarian pause in air strikes

The Red Cross has appealed for an immediate truce in the fighting to allow families to seek water, food and medical assistance, describing the situation as "dire".

Russia presented a draft resolution to the UN Security Council on Saturday calling for a humanitarian pause in the Saudi-led air war against the Huthi Shiite rebels, now in its 11th day.

The coalition kept up its nighttime raids against rebel positions and arms depots, particularly around the capital Sanaa and Saada, the northern stronghold of the Iran-backed rebels.

In main southern city Aden, the rebels advanced into the central district of Mualla, capturing the provincial government headquarters, a local official said.

They bombarded residential areas, setting fire to several buildings and damaging others, witnesses said.

Residents reported casualties and said dozens of families had fled their homes in the port city, the heart of which sits on an extinct volcano jutting out into the sea.

A Yemeni boy at Bani Matar
© AFP Photo/Mohammed HuwaisA Yemeni boy walks past the rubble of destroyed houses in the village of Bani Matar, 70 kilometers (43 miles) west of the capital Sanaa, on April 4, 2015, a day after it was reportedly hit in an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition
The rebel forces advanced to near the port of Mualla, which is defended by militiamen of "popular committees" loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who has fled to neighbouring Saudi Arabia.

"Snipers, who took position on the roofs of provincial government buildings, targeted passersby and members of the popular committees," pro-Hadi fighter Khalid Bashaea told AFP.

'Many more will die'

Hospitals treating the wounded are running short of medicines and the streets of Aden are strewn with bodies, the Red Cross said, calling for a 24-hour ceasefire.

"Our relief supplies and surgical personnel must be allowed to enter the country and safely reach the worst-affected places to provide help," said Robert Mardin, head of Middle East operations for the International Committee of the Red Cross.

"Otherwise, put starkly, many more people will die. For the wounded, their chances of survival depend on action within hours, not days."

Saudi border guards
© AFP PhotoSaudi border guards pose for pictures in Ashiq island, in the southern province of Jizan near the border with Yemen on April 1, 2015
The Saudi-led military coalition, which comprises four other Gulf states as well as Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Sudan, said aid would be allowed into the country when conditions are right.

"The humanitarian operation is part of our job, part of our responsibility," spokesman Ahmed Assiri told reporters in Riyadh.

But "we don't want to supply the militias," he added.

Violence has escalated sharply in the deeply tribal country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula since the coalition launched Operation Decisive Storm against the rebels on March 26.

Hadi took refuge in Aden in February after the Huthis seized power in the capital Sanaa, but left for Saudi Arabia last month as they advanced on the city.

The rebels seized his presidential palace in Aden on Thursday but, aided by air strikes and arms drops, Hadi loyalists drove the rebels out of the hilltop complex the following day.

Regional power struggle

At least 185 people are reported to have been killed in the fighting in Aden between supporters and opponents of the president.

There were also violent clashes Sunday in the rebel-held southern town of Loder, in Abyan province, where 24 people, including 21 Shiite militiamen, were reported dead.

The violence has raised fears that impoverished Yemen could be torn apart by a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran -- the foremost Sunni and Shiite Muslim powers in the Middle East.

Iran has accused Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia of sowing instability in the region with its air campaign against the Huthis, who hail from the mainly Shiite northern mountains.

But it has rejected as "utter lies" accusations that it armed the rebels, who have allied with army units loyal to ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh to seize vast swathes of Yemen.

Russia's request to halt the air strikes came as Gulf countries were pushing for a separate UN resolution that would impose an arms embargo and sanctions on the Huthis.

That draft text has come up against strong opposition from Russia, which proposed amendments to apply the arms embargo to the entire country and to limit sanctions.

Source:AFP