At least 31 civilians were killed Saturday in air raids by the Saudi-led Arab coalition in Yemen, several sources reported yesterday. Al-Masirah TV station, close to the Houthis, reported multiple strikes by the military coalition against Al-Hayjah, a rebel-controlled area in Jawf, where residents were “gathered around the debris of the downed plane”.
The rebels have reported many deaths, including women and children. “According to preliminary reports, 31 civilians were killed and 12 injured in airstrikes in Al-Hayjah,” said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) in a statement. Lise Grande, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Yemen, denounced “terrible strikes”. “Under the terms of international humanitarian conventions, parties using force have the obligation to protect civilians.
Five years after the start of this conflict, the protagonists still do not respect this, it’s shocking. ” It is not the first time that Saudi Arabia has killed civilians, continuing to deny responsibility for the repeated massacres. Since the start of his war of aggression in Yemen in March 2013, under the guise of re-establishing the institutional legitimacy of the transitional authorities of Abd-Rabbo Mansour Hadi, the number of civilian victims in this conflict in Yemen has greatly increased.
According to various humanitarian organizations, the war in Yemen has claimed tens of thousands of lives, mostly civilians. 24.1 million, more than two-thirds of the population, are in need of assistance, according to the UN. The protagonists in Yemen have been accused of committing blunders that cost the lives of civilians and forced millions of people to flee their homes.
