Saudi-led forces tell Yemenis to leave Old Saada district

CAIRO (Reuters) - Saudi-led forces dropped leaflets on Friday asking residents of the Old Saada district in Saada province to leave, the state television channel Al Ekhbariya said. In a phone interview with the station, the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, said a message had been delivered to Yemenis through various media outlets to stay away, for their safety, from areas where Houthi fighters were concentrated. Saada province is a stronghold of the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. Asseri also said that air strikes conducted by the coalition in Saada since Thursday had targeted those who had planned operations against Saudi Arabia and who were hiding in Saada province. (Reporting By Omar Fahmy; Writing By Maha El Dahan; Editing by Kevin Liffey)