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 on Monday dismissed comments by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Iranian demands for ending the war have been “ridiculous.”

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Houthis say death toll from airstrikes increases to 44

The death toll from Saturday's airstrikes that hit homes near Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, 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.…