During 2017, the two parties to the conflict in Yemen: the Arab Coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE and the government of President Hadi on the one hand; Ansar Allah (Houthis) group and their former ally President Saleh, on the other; both used starvation as war tactic and denied access to humanitarian aid.
In 2017, Mwatana documented no less than 26 incidents of access denial of humanitarian aid. Ansar Allah was responsible for most of them in Sa’ada governorate (23 incidents). Popular Resistance forces and the pro-Hadi forces committed 3 incidents in Al Dhale’e, Shabwah and Taizz.
The blockade and the closure of Sana’a International Airport before commercial flights by the Saudi-led Arab Coalition have worsened the situation in Yemen. “Popular Resistance” and pro-Hadi armed groups denied access to trucks carrying food or demanded money to grant them access.
Similarly, Ansar Allah (the Houthis) and the forces loyal to their former ally, former President Saleh, blocked and confiscated trucks carrying humanitarian aid (food and in kind). They also intervened in the delivery of such humanitarian aid to the beneficiaries and imposed rigid restrictions on the work of humanitarian organizations in the areas under their control.
Bill Van Esveld, senior children’s rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “The Saudi-led coalition’s cruel restrictions on fuel to Yemen, effectively shutting water taps and hospitals, have turned an impoverished country into a humanitarian disaster. Meanwhile, Houthi-Saleh forces have repeatedly blocked groups bringing vaccines into Yemen and kept aid from reaching people who desperately need it”[1].
The Legal Framework
Air blockade violates the provisions of International Humanitarian Law if it leads to harming civilian lives and interests, and if the suffering of civilians exceeds the anticipated military advantages to be gained by the blockade.
Intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population and depriving them of basic supplies such as water, food and medicine is a war crime and a grave violation of the International Humanitarian Law. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court of 1998 categorizes “intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health” as “serious violations”. Paragraph XXV of Article 8 (b) provides that “intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including willfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions,” is a war crime.
Article No. 17 of Convention IV of the Geneva Conventions provides that the Parties to the conflict shall “endeavor to conclude local agreements for the removal from besieged or encircled areas, of wounded, sick, infirm, and aged persons, children and maternity cases, and for the passage of ministers of all religions, medical personnel and medical equipment on their way to such areas”.
On April 12, 2017, Idriss Jazairy, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and International Sanctions said, “the aerial and naval blockade imposed on Yemen by the coalition forces was one of the main causes of the humanitarian catastrophe” and that it “involves grave breaches of the most basic norms of human rights law, as well as of the law of armed conflict”.[2]
Incidents:
- On Monday November 6, 2017, the Saudi-led Arab Coalition decided to “temporarily close all Yemen’s air, land, and sea ports.” This decision included the closure of Aden and Sayun airports which used to be open before commercial flights. The decision came following the missile attack launched by Ansar Allah group (the Houthis) and was intercepted by Saudi Arabia near King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday November 4, 2017.
On Sunday November 12, 2017, Mwatana for Human Rights released a statement in which it called upon the Arab Coalition to open all ports in Yemen including Sana’a International airport before commercial and humanitarian flights immediately.[3]
On November 17, 2017, Philip Luther, Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International said: “The looming prospect of famine is becoming a reality because of the new restrictions by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition, which appear to amount to collective punishment of Yemen’s civilians.”[4]
On November 23, 2017, the Arab Coalition announced that Red Sea port of Al Hudaydahwould be reopened to receive food aid and humanitarian relief, and Sana’a airport would be open for UN flights with humanitarian relief. [5] Aden International airport was reopened on November 13, 2017, while Sayun airport was reopened on November 14, 2017.[6] But Sana’a International airport remains closed before commercial flights since August 2016 until the time of writing this report.
In a joint statement on Yemen, on December 2, 2017, UN leaders said: “Without the urgent resumption of commercial imports, especially food, fuel and medicines, millions of children, women and men risk mass hunger, disease and death.” The statement added: “Ongoing commercial import restrictions have led to shortages of fuel, food and other essentials, driving up prices and devastating lives and livelihoods. The price of wheat flour has risen by 30 per cent, while the price of fuel has doubled and that of trucked water has skyrocketed by 600 per cent in some locations. Urban water networks in seven cities have run out of fuel and now depend on humanitarian organizations to fill in the gap. Other cities will shortly be in a similar situation if the blockade is not lifted, which would leave 11 million people without safe water.”[7]
- On Wednesday January 4, 2017, one of the field operatives of Ansar Allah group (the Houthis) in one of the districts of Sa’ada governorate intervened in the work of aid workers under the pretext that he would review and modify the list of beneficiaries. Dozens of families were denied access to such aid as a result of his intervention”.[8]
- On Monday June 12, 2017, Ansar Allah group (the Houthis) in the Al-Hijah village, Al-Musloub district in al-Jawf governorate intercepted three vehicles carrying humanitarian aid for residents of the village of Mallaha. This humanitarian aid contained food items for 250 families.[9]
One of the beneficiaries from the village of Mallaha said: “We live under difficult circumstances, and when we want to go to the market, we have to walk 15 kilometers from the village of Mallaha to get to the market of Al-Musloub. Our village was ravaged by war: many victims were killed, our houses destroyed, and schools shut down. We want peace and security. We have had enough.”[10]
- On Sunday October 11, 2017 at about 09:40 am, checkpoints under the command of Popular Resistance forces and pro-Hadi forces intercepted cargo trucks in the town of Turbah in Taizz – on the “Public Road” linking the cities of Taizz and Aden. These checkpoints demanded money from every truck to allow them to pass through. As a protest against this policy, truck drivers went on strike and did not move cargo for a few days at the beginning of October 2017. This, in turn, led to shortage of food supplies in the city of Taizz and to increasing food prices.
In an interview with Mwatana, Waseem Abdu (32 years old), a cargo truck driver said: “As soon as I arrived in the town of Turbah, the checkpoint there demanded YR 30,000 (roughly $60). Many other cargo trucks were barked near the checkpoint because they refused to pay this illegal amount of money. The Checkpoint personnel assaulted one of the truck drivers and threatened him. This drove me with a number of truck drivers to stop working as we were being subjected to extortion by checkpoints.”[11]
After the fall of the area between Taizz and Aden into the hands of the “Popular Resistance” and Pro-Hadi forces in mid-March 2016, checkpoints of each resistance faction began collecting money from those who pass through these checkpoints in the name of supporting battlefronts.
[1]Human Rights Watch،Yemen: Coalition’s Blocking Aid, Fuel Endangers Civilians: Houthi-Saleh Obstruction Heightens Crisis, https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/09/27/yemen-coalitions-blocking-aid-fuel-endangers-civilians.
[2]OHCHR, Lift blockade of Yemen to stop “catastrophe” of millions facing starvation, says UN expert, http://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21496&LangID=E.
[3]Mwatana for Human Rights, Yemen: Saudi-led Coalition’s Closure of Ports Cuts the Remaining Life Artery, November 12, 2017.
[4]Amnesty International, Yemen: USA, UK and France risk complicity in collective punishment of civilians، https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/11/yemen-usa-uk-and-france-risk-complicity-in-collective-punishment-of-civilians/
[5]Saudi Press Agency، Command of Pro-Legitimacy Coalition forces to reopen Yemen’s Hodeidah port, Sana’a airport for aid، As of tomorrow, Thursday http://www.spa.gov.sa/1690597.
[6]Yemen Airlines announcement on its Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/YemenAirways/.
[7]UN High Commissioner for Refugees, United Nations leaders call on the Saudi-led coalition to fully lift blockade of Yemeni Red Sea ports، https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/united-nations-leaders-call-saudi-led-coalition-fully-lift-blockade-yemeni-red-sea.
[8]Mwatana interviewed local residents on January 15, 16, and 17, 2017.
[9]Mwatana interviewed local residents on June 15 and 16, 2017.
[10]Mwatana interviewed one of the residents in the village of Mallaha in Al-Jawf on June 16, 2017.
[11]Mwatana interviewed Waseem Abdu on October 12, 2017.