21 Killed As Boat Capsizes Off Yemen's Red Sea Coast

A local official said on Tuesday that 21 people, mostly women and children, were killed after a boat carrying 27 passengers capsized in the Red Sea off the coast of northwest Yemen.

The accident occurred on Tuesday afternoon off the Alluheyah district in the northern part of Hodeidah port city, Akram al-Ahdal, an official from the district's council, told Xinhua.

The passengers, all local villagers, were on their way from Alluheyah to Kamaran Island, the largest Yemeni island in the Red Sea, to attend a wedding ceremony of a relative, the official said, adding that the fatalities included 12 women, seven children and two men.

"Six people survived the accident and were taken to the Al-Thawra Hospital in the city of Hodeidah to receive first aid," he revealed, noting the accident was probably caused by a strong wind.

Kamaran Island and Hodeidah port have been under the control of the Houthi rebels since October 2014.