Houthi rebels say at least 44 killed in airstrike near Yemeni capital, and other Mideast news

The death toll from airstrikes near Yemen’s capital has increased to 44, most of them women and children, health authorities from the Iran-backed Houthi rebels said overnight. Separately, Iran’s foreign ministry has dismissed comments made at the weekend by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Iranian demands for ending the war have been “ridiculous.”

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Sunday. Read our full coverage here .

The death toll from airstrikes that hit homes near Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, on Saturday has increased to 44, most of them women and children, Houthi health authorities said late Sunday.

The strikes on the village of al-Shariya, east of Sanaa, wounded 40 others, including eight children and nine women, said Anees al-Asbahi, spokesperson for the Houthi-run Health Ministry. The dead included 21 children and 10 women, he said, making the strikes one of the deadliest attacks in the latest bout of violence in Yemen’s year-long civil war.

Al-Asbahi said rescue teams were still searching the area for missing people, raising fears that the death toll could rise.

He blamed Saudi Arabia for the strikes, which came amid a major escalation in fighting between the Iran-backed rebels and the kingdom that has killed hundreds of people in Yemen and dozens in Saudi Arabia.

Iran’s foreign ministry on Monday dismissed remarks by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said on Sunday that Iranian demands for ending the war had sometimes been “outrageous and ridiculous.”

At a briefing, foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters that U.S. strikes during talks in June 2025 and February this year had been “illogical and ridiculous.” He described the war as a “criminal” act.

Baghaei said none of Iran’s demands were illogical or ridiculous. They include an end to the U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports , the lifting of sanctions, the unfreezing of Iranian assets, compensation for war damage and an end to hostilities throughout the region, including Israeli operations in Lebanon.

On Sunday, Rubio said President Donald Trump prefers a diplomatic solution, but “right now, it hasn’t been very productive because the Iranian demands are simply not just unacceptable, but in some cases outrageous and ridiculous and really not realistic.”

Trump told CNN in a phone interview Sunday that as long as the U.S. sees progress in negotiations with Tehran and the two sides sign a “strong agreement,” it is “highly unlikely it’s going to be necessary” to resume strikes.

Baghaei said Iran’s proposal to end hostilities by lifting sanctions and reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz remains “on the table.” Last week, he said Iran had shortened the timetable for implementing its seven-step plan to reopen the strait and resume nuclear talks with the U.S. from seven days to two.

Trump is scheduled to meet Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani at the White House on Monday, according to his official schedule.

Qatar has helped mediate efforts to end the war between the U.S. and Iran.

This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.