Yemen: British (and US) weapons in Saudi raids that killed civilians
An Oxfam report confirms the use of Western-made weaponry used in Saudi-led Arab coalition attacks. A quarter of the 1,700 raids between January 2021 and February 2022 saw the exclusive use of weapons sold by London and Washington. 87 civilians were killed, 136 others wounded. Oman delegation tries to mediate the resumption of the fragile truce.
Sana'a (AsiaNews) - A new report published in recent days by Oxfam activists, entitled "Fuelling Violence", once again confirms the extensive use of weapons and bombs sold by the United States and the United Kingdom to Riyadh and used to target the civilian population in Yemen. The data collected by the NGO speak of hundreds of attacks launched by the Saudi-led Arab coalition against the Houthis, supported by Tehran, and which end up causing innocent victims.
A spiral of violence only partly contained by a fragile truce signed on 2 April last year, but which was not renewed on 2 October due to a lack of agreement on the payment of civil servants' salaries in rebel-held territories.
An agreement on which UN, US and Omani envoys are mediating. A delegation from Mascate has arrived in the last few days to try to revive the ceasefire between the parties and avert further - and more substantial - bloodshed of civilians, including minors.
The Oxfam report accuses London (and Washington) of fuelling a renewed 'climate of violence against civilians' in the Arab country through the sale and trade of arms to the Saudi-led coalition.
Activists counted more than 1,700 attacks against the population between January 2021 and February 2022 - before the introduction of the ceasefire - and at least a quarter of these were carried out using only US and British-made weapons.
In the reporting period, Oxfam says the coalition is responsible for at least 87 civilian deaths and a further 136 injured, as well as 19 attacks on hospitals, clinics and ambulances; these are joined by 293 raids that have forced civilians from their homes.
"The sheer number of attacks on civilians is stark testament to the terrible tragedy the people of Yemen have suffered," said Martin Butcher, Oxfam’s policy advisor on arms and conflict and author of the report, in a statement.
"Our analysis shows there is a pattern of violence against civilians, and all sides in this conflict have not done enough to protect civilian life, which they are obligated to do under International Humanitarian Law."
The conflict flared up in 2014 as an internal clash between pro-Tehran Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed government forces; over the months it escalated into open warfare with the intervention of Riyadh in March 2015 at the head of a coalition of Arab nations and has claimed almost 400,000 lives in recent years.
According to the UN, it has caused the 'worst humanitarian crisis in the world', on which the Covid-19 has had 'devastating' effects; millions of people are on the brink of starvation and children - 11,000 dead in the conflict - will suffer the consequences for decades. There are over three million internally displaced persons, most of them living in conditions of extreme misery, hunger and epidemics of various kinds, not least cholera.
In the past, London has been at the centre of harsh criticism for its decision to continue arms sales to Saudi Arabia, despite concerns about human rights violations. In this regard, the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (Caat) was founded, which challenges the arms trade in the courtrooms and attempts to limit its sales.
A ruling of the British High Court is expected at the end of the month, while a previous court action (in 2019) obtained a suspension - but only temporary - in the sale of arms, which was resumed in 2021. According to estimates by Caat experts, the real value of the trade between the parties is almost EUR 30 billion.
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