SANAA, May 16 (Xinhua) -- At least six family members were killed in an airstrike by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition that hit a house in the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Thursday morning, witnesses said.

"A father, mother and their four children were killed after the coalition airstrike hit the family house this morning," a witness named Amat al-Malik Abdullah told Xinhua.

The house is located in the Rabat neighbourhood at the center of Sanaa.

All houses in the neighbourhood were badly damaged. Rescuers said they were still searching for possible survivors from under the rubble.

Earlier Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition announced the launch of a military operation against Houthi targets in Yemen, Al Arabiya TV reported.

The operation came after the Houthi rebels launched armed drone attacks on Tuesday against two Saudi oil pump stations, causing limited fire and damages.

The collation's spokesperson Turki al-Malki said that the operation aimed to neutralize the ability of the Houthi militia to carry out "acts of aggression."

The Saudi-led coalition has been intervening in the civil war in Yemen since 2015 to fight the Houthi rebels who seized Yemen's northern provinces, including the capital of Sanaa.