At least nine civilians were reported killed and up to 18 others were injured by alleged US airstrikes on a home in Bir Zaid neighborhood of Al-Jiraf area, Shu’ub District, Sana’a, Yemen on March 15, 2025. At least two women and two children were among those injured.
Most sources referred to strikes on the Al-Jaraf neighbourhood (الجراف) in connection with these harm claims, while one source referred to both Al-Jaraf and Al-Jawaf neighbourhoods (الجواف); Airwars will refine the location should further information come to light.
Multiple sources reported that the strike hit a residential building, but one source said the home operated as a headquarters for the Houthi group, which controls the Yemeni capital Sana’a both politically and militarily. It was unclear if those killed were Houthi officials.
The US military released a statement that “On March 15, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) initiated an operation consisting of precision strikes against Iran-backed Houthi targets across Yemen in order to restore freedom of navigation.” However, as there are no detail on the locations of these strike, the incident has been graded as a “likely” US strike until further information is provided.
Yemeni News Portal reported that US aircraft bombed a residential neighborhood in the Shu’ub district, killing 13 civilians and injuring nine others. A Facebook post from Adham Sharha put the casualty toll at “9 dead and more than 10 wounded, all civilians”, along with an image of smoke rising in the background of an urban area, while Abu Hafez al-Faqih quoted the “preliminary toll” from the Ministry of Health of nine killed and nine wounded in Shu’ub District. The highest casualty toll was provided by Gamal Rizk, who reported that 18 people were killed and 18 others were wounded, to varying degrees of injuries.
Mwatana reported on this incident in an April 28th report, stating that “at approximately 8:15 p.m., U.S. fighter jets launched five airstrikes targeting a home in Bir Zaid neighborhood of Al-Jiraf area, Shu’ub District, north of Amanat Al-Asimah. The strikes injured two civilians, including a woman from neighboring houses, and caused extensive damage to surrounding homes and commercial shops.”
Multiple sources reported that the strikes targeted a residential neighborhood. Posting to Facebook, Mohammed Al-Mawri specified that the strikes hit “residential buildings”, adding that “a number of residential buildings were damaged”. Twitter/X users @YznBdyl, @yhy_hsn65895, @j6fY8nUqhHeVRtc reiterated this claim. Facebook user Mohammed Ahmed shared specifics on one such building, writing that: “Initial reports indicate that the bombing of Sana’a targeted a three-story residential building (Beit Al-Sharfi) in the Al-Jawaf neighborhood, where civilians lived.”
A Facebook post by Mai news reported that Houthi media reported damage to “several residential buildings”, adding that “Local media reported that a US airstrike targeted the headquarters of the Houthi Supreme Political Council”. A post from Naji Hussein Al-Qubaisi specified that the home of Hassan Abdul Qader Sharaf al-Din, which was “targeted”, is considered the office of the Houthi Political Council.
Local resident Abdullah Al-Alafi posted on Facebook that “Four airstrikes hit our neighborhood in Al-Jarf Al-Sharqi, near our home. The explosions were violent and shook the neighborhood like an earthquake. They terrified our children and women. We still don’t know the extent of the casualties.”
Images posted by sources Mohammed Fadel Abbas, Yemeni News Portal, Gamal Rizk and Al-Ahed News have not been archived within this incident as they have been identified as images relating to different events in Yemen from previous air campaigns.
Where sources identified a belligerent, all sources attributed the strikes to the US military, with some sources mentioning the “US-British alliance”.
This incident was updated on Match 28th 2025 to remove references to an NBC report, which had been incorrectly attributed to this strike but is likely connected to a later incident (forthcoming in Airwars’ archive) and further updated on April 29, 2025 to include additional information from Mwatana.