UAE Faces Accusations of Serious Violations in Yemen and Undermining Civil Peace

Yemen Monitor / Newsroom:

A coalition of Yemeni human rights organizations issued a joint statement on Monday, emphasizing the responsibility of the United Arab Emirates for serious human rights violations in Yemen, asserting that these violations threaten Yemeni civil peace, national security, and regional stability.

The organizations clarified that the UAE has engaged in blatant interference in Yemeni affairs by supporting armed groups, leading to serious overruns in the Hadramawt and Al-Mahra governorates. These groups have stormed and forcibly imposed their control over the two governorates, in a flagrant violation of Yemen’s sovereignty.

The organizations affirmed that the UAE is directly responsible for the violations committed by these groups, including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, and enforced disappearances, noting that these acts constitute crimes against humanity.

They pointed out that the UAE has used foreign mercenaries to carry out assassinations, forced detentions, and other violations, and has established unofficial detention facilities where torture and enforced disappearance crimes are practiced.

The statement emphasized that Emirati responsibility extends to providing safe haven to leaders involved in undermining the Yemeni state, despite the threat this poses to Yemen’s national security and that of neighboring countries.

The statement welcomed the Yemeni government’s decision to end the Emirati military presence, stressing that this decision does not absolve the UAE and its officials of legal responsibility for the crimes and violations committed during the years of its intervention in Yemen.

The statement called for opening national and international investigations into the violations, holding those responsible accountable, compensating victims, and urging the Yemeni government to take legal measures against the UAE and the involved Emirati leaders.

It also called on the UN Security Council Sanctions Committee to review the UAE’s role in Yemen and to include those responsible for violations on its sanctions lists.

Sixty-five Yemeni human rights organizations signed the statement, confirming their determination to intensify efforts to hold the UAE and its officials accountable for their crimes and violations in Yemen.