Western-backed coalition under pressure over Yemen raid
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DUBAI- An air strike on a funeral gathering, widely blamed on Saudi-led warplanes, poses more trouble for a Western-backed Arab campaign against Yemen's Houthis that has long been criticised for civilian losses.
The White House announced an immediate review of Washington's support for the 18-month-old military push after planes hit mourners at a community hall in the capital Sanaa on Saturday, killing 140 people according to one UN estimate and 82 according to the Houthis.
The statement from Riyadh's main ally, noting for the second time in as many months that US support was not "a blank check", sets up an awkward test of a Saudi-US partnership already strained by differences over wars in other Arab lands.
The reproach also indirectly hands a propaganda win to Riyadh's arch rival Tehran, a Houthi ally that has long seen the Sunni kingdom as a corrupt and domineering influence on its impoverished southern neighbour, diplomats say.
