Tag Archives: war crimes

Foreign Policy, International

Saudi Airstrikes Hit Yemen Market, Killing at Least 41 Civilians

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by Jason Ditz

Saudi warplanes attacked a crowded marketplace in the northwestern Yemeni province of Hajjah today, killing at least 41 people, all of them civilians, and wounding scores of others. Local officials say many of the wounded are severely so, and are not expected to survive.

The attacks centered on an outdoor marketplace and a nearby restaurant, and overwhelmed two nearby hospitals with the number of casualties. Saudi officials expressed “regret” for any “injuries or loss of life,” but insisted they weren’t sure it was true.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) confirmed the incident, however, saying 40 of the wounded civilians were admitted to Abs Hospital, one of the two hospitals which took in casualties. Amnesty International reiterated their call for the US to stop sending arms to the Saudis, saying both unexploded US bombs and fragments of exploded US bombs are showing up around civilian targets in Yemen.

This is the latest in a large number of Saudi airstrikes against targets that ended up being civilian in nature. Over the course of the first year of the Saudi war in Yemen, over 6,000 people have been killed, roughly half civilians, and those overwhelmingly the result of airstrikes.

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UN Report Finds ‘Systematic’ Saudi Targeting of Yemeni Civilians

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by Jason Ditz

A leaked report by a UN panel of experts is calling for a formal inquiry into Saudi human rights abuses, saying the nation is “deliberately starving” Yemeni civilians in its war, and targeting civilians in airstrikes in a “widespread and systematic manner.”

The report went on to document 119 attacks on civilians that were likely violations of international law, saying some of the attacks could amount to “crimes against humanity.” They also faulted the Saudis for failing to respect any of the brokered ceasefires.

The incident is just adding to calls among human rights groups for Western nations to stop selling arms to the Saudis, and to stop blocking efforts to get a formal international investigation into the abuses. During the UN General Assembly, an attempt to start a probe into Yemeni war crimes ended when the Saudis complained, and it was agreed the Saudis could investigate themselves.

So far, the Saudis have not commented on the matter, and the US State Department has refused to discuss the report because it wasn’t supposed to be public, saying only that they’re concerned about “allegations of abuse.” The US has repeatedly endorsed the Saudi war, and is continuing to provide both arms and logistics support.

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Four Killed as Saudi Strike Kills Yemen Doctors Without Borders Hospital

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by Jason Ditz

A new statement from Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported a Saudi rocket strike, likely an airstrike, hit one of their hospitals in the Yemeni capital city of Sanaa, killing four people and wounding 10 others, including three MSF staff members.

MSF said they couldn’t yet confirm if the incident was an airstrike or a ground-based rocket firing, but did say Saudi warplanes were flying overhead at the time, and that in addition to the strike that hit the hospital, a second one landed nearby.

MSF Director Raquel Ayora described it as part of a “worrying pattern” of Saudi attacks against medical services, warning that the destruction of the hospital will leave residents in the area without access to healthcare for weeks.

Saudi officials have not commented yet on this latest strike, though historically they’ve offered blanket denials whenever a strike gets them too much negative publicity. This has been particularly true of attacks on hospitals and other obvious civilian targets.

Foreign Policy, International

Saudi Warplanes Destroy MSF Hospital in Yemen

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by Jason Ditz

Adding to concerns about Saudi attacks on civilians in Yemen, an overnight air raid against the capital city of Sanaa pounded a residential district, hitting several homes, a girl’s school, and destroying a Doctors Without Borders (MSF) hospital.

MSF reported the facility was struck multiple times and left in “wreckage.” The first strike hit the operations theater of the hospital, which fortunately was empty at night, and the staff had enough time to evacuate for the most part before a second missile went careening into the maternity ward.

Two MSF staffers were wounded, but there appear to have been no deaths in the hospital strike, though casualties out of the surrounding area are so far not certain. This is the second MSF facility destroyed in an airstrike this month, after the US destroyed one in Afghanistan.

MSF reported they had provided the coordinates of all facilities in Yemen to the Saudi-led coalition two weeks ago, specifically for fear that the reckless air campaign would mistakenly hit them. There has been no Saudi response from the strike so far, but MSF says that whatever the circumstances, the strike amounts to a war crime.

Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Non-Lethal Aid: US Spends $15 Million on Journalists for Anti-Assad Reports

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Funding Is Pending Congressional Approval

by Jason Ditz, March 13, 2015

The US State Department has announced their latest round of “non-lethal aid” for Syrian rebels, and while couched as an attempt to “support the Syrian opposition,” much of the money is going to pet projects to try to rile up international support against the Assad government.

$15 million of the funding is going to go to journalists and opposition figures “to support documentation of war crimes, human rights violations, and other Syrian government abuses.”

The State Department has been keen on this, hyping abuses committed by the Assad government for years, initially in an effort to build up support for a failed US invasion, and now seemingly just to keep that window open.

Despite talking up a $70 million figure for the non-lethal aid to rebels, the rebels themselves appear only to be getting about $25 million worth of gear, with the rest going to journalists or self-proclaimed governments-in-exile to try to buy credibility.

Much of that will be going to the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) in Istanbul, which has virtually no backing by any armed rebel forces anymore, but is still regularly bankrolled by the US to keep their lights on while they hold endless meetings over who is going to be leading their ultimately powerless group.

Image by Freedom House via Creative Commons license.