An investigation panel set up by the Saudi-led coalition has accused Houthi rebels in Yemen of using sites close to hospitals and schools to conduct their operations and host military barracks.
The accusations were among the findings of a wave of incident reports in Yemen by the Joint Incidents Assessment Team, which investigates accusations of civilian casualties.
"The Houthi and the ousted militias are using sites adjacent to hospitals," Mansour Al Mansour, the assessment team spokesman, said at King Salman Airbase on Monday.
He was referring to a report on an incident in September 2015 when two infants were killed in a coalition airstrike near to Al Sabeen Maternity Hospital in Sanaa, which is controlled by the rebels.
Mr Al Mansour said coalition forces were targeting a Houthi base in Al Zaydiyah security building just 80 metres from the hospital and that the hospital building suffered collateral damage.
Mr Al Mansour showed aerial images of the Houthi base to show its location near the hospital.
The assessment team also reported on a number of other incidents where civilians had been killed. In each case, they said the coalition had attacked legitimate military targets.
Mr Al Mansour addressed a Human Rights Watch report into an attack on Al Sham water bottling plant, which killed 14 workers in August 2015.
Brigadier General Ahmed Al Assiri, the coalition spokesman at the time said the plant was being used by Houthis to make explosives.
However, the assessment team investigation found that coalition forces were targeting ground defences positioned close to the factory using a laser-guided bomb. Due to poor weather conditions and unpredictable clouds, the bomb missed the target landing in the factory’s yard.
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Although the panel found the original aim of the bombing was intended for a “legitimate military target” the assessment team said coalition forces should apologise for “this unintentional error and provide assistance to the families of victims”.
The team also addressed a report by the UN Panel of Experts on Yemen that found coalition forces targeted a resort in Ibb province, which was used as a military headquarters by the Houthi militias. The attack hit a building killed nine civilians.
The assessment team found the building represented a legitimate military target, as the original target was located one kilometre from the building where the civilians were killed.
Mr Al Mansour said the team concluded that the coalition procedures were correct, and in accordance with international humanitarian law.
He also said an investigation into coalition airstrikes, which damaged the Sala’a Palace Museum in Taiz in 2016, found that Houthis had seized part of the museum and used it as a barracks and to store weapons.
The assessment team investigations come as the Saudi-led coalition is under mounting international pressure to end ease restrictions at Yemen’s ports and border crossings.
The coalition tightened control at the ports earlier this month after rebels launched a missile at Riyadh.
Coalition forces have also foiled an attempt by Houthi rebels to place mines in the Bab El Mandeb strait, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.
The war has since killed over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, injured about 35,000 others and displaced more than three million people.
Aid agencies are warning that thousands of people could die from hunger and disease if aid supplies are unable to reach areas of Houthi-controlled territory.
Adel Al Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister said last week that no country has given more to Yemen than Saudi Arabia, including a $2 billion injection into Yemen’s central bank.
The minister said Houthis are withholding billions of riyals in trade tariffs coming in from the Red Sea Port of Hodeida.
The head of World Food Programme in Yemen said on Monday aid deliveries cannot get to those in need because of the continuing blockade in Yemen, AP reported.
Of a population of 26 million, some 17 million Yemenis do not know where their next meal is coming from and 7 million are totally dependent on food assistance, Stephen Anderson said.
Coming 2 America
Directed by: Craig Brewer
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones
3/5 stars
The%20specs
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CREW
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
MATCH INFO
Al Jazira 3 (O Abdulrahman 43', Kenno 82', Mabkhout 90 4')
Al Ain 1 (Laba 39')
Red cards: Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Essentials
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Seattle from Dh6,755 return in economy and Dh24,775 in business class.
The cruise
UnCruise Adventures offers a variety of small-ship cruises in Alaska and around the world. A 14-day Alaska’s Inside Passage and San Juans Cruise from Seattle to Juneau or reverse costs from $4,695 (Dh17,246), including accommodation, food and most activities. Trips in 2019 start in April and run until September.
Allardyce's management career
Clubs (10) - Limerick (1991-1992), Perston North End (1992), Blackpool (1994-1996), Notts County (1997-1999), Bolton Wanderers (1999-2007), Newcastle United (2007-2008), Blackburn Rovers (2008-2010), West Ham United (2011-2015), Sunderland (2016), Crystal Palace (2016-2017)
Countries (1) - England (2016)
The biog
Favourite food: Tabbouleh, greek salad and sushi
Favourite TV show: That 70s Show
Favourite animal: Ferrets, they are smart, sensitive, playful and loving
Favourite holiday destination: Seychelles, my resolution for 2020 is to visit as many spiritual retreats and animal shelters across the world as I can
Name of first pet: Eddy, a Persian cat that showed up at our home
Favourite dog breed: I love them all - if I had to pick Yorkshire terrier for small dogs and St Bernard's for big
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
