led coalition expressed deep regret over a decision by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) to evacuate staff from northern Yemen and said it was trying to set up "urgent meetings" with the medical aid group. MSF said on Thursday it was evacuating its staff from six hospitals in northern Yemen after a coalition airstrike allegedly hit a health facility operated by the group killing 19 people. "The coalition to support the legitimacy in Yemen expressed its deep regret over MSF decision to evacuate its staff from six hospitals in northern Yemen and asserts its appreciation for the work the group is undertaking with the Yemeni people in these difficult circumstances," the coalition said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). The coalition said it was committed to respecting international humanitarian law in all its operations in Yemen and had set up an independent team to investigate incidents in which civilians are killed. "The coalition is seeking to hold urgent meetings with MSF to find a way on how to jointly find a solution to this situation," the statement said. MSF is one of handful of international medical aid groups operating on the ground in Yemen which has seen a 16-month civil war between a Gulf Arab coalition and an Iran-allied militia. MSF said it had met with officials from the Saudi-led coalition and shared GPS coordinates of the hospital it operates in with parties involved in the conflict but aerial bombings had continued. "The decision to evacuate the staff from a project is never taken lightly but in the absence of credible assurances that parties will respect the protected status of medical facilities there may be no other option," said the statement. The cost from damage to infrastructure and economic losses in the civil war is more than $14 billion so far, according to a confidential report seen by Reuters.
