At least 30 people died and dozens more were missing in a landslide in Yemen, officials said on Thursday.

The landslide hit al-Dhofair, a small village near the Yemeni capital of Sanaa late on Wednesday, said a Yemeni official, adding that dozens of houses in the village were destroyed.

Police cordoned off the area and rescuers were searching for survivors, said the official.

Situated at the southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen has a mostly desert climate, but it's temperate in western mountains is affected by seasonal monsoon.

(Xinhua News Agency December 30, 2005)