25-04-2024 05:30 AM Jerusalem Timing

Amnesty on Targeting Yemeni Schools by Saudi: “Our Kids Are Bombed”

Amnesty on Targeting Yemeni Schools by Saudi: “Our Kids Are Bombed”

Amnesty International said Friday that a Saudi-led coalition had bombed schools in Yemen, violating international humanitarian law and denying access to education for thousands of Yemeni children.

Amnesty International said Friday that a Saudi-led coalition had bombed schools in Yemen, violating international humanitarian law and denying access to education for thousands of Yemeni children.

The London-based rights group called on "all states who supply arms to the Saudi Arabia-led coalition, including the USA and UK, to suspend all transfers of weapons which are being used to commit violations of international law".

Yemen has been since March 26 under brutal aggression by Saudi-led coalition.

Thousands have been martyred and injured in the attack, with the vast majority of them are civilians.Yemeni schools targeted by Saudi aggression

Riyadh launched the attack on Yemen in a bid to restore power to fugitive Hadi who is a close ally to Saudi Arabia.

The Rights watchdogs have accused the coalition of breaking the laws of war and killing civilians.

In a report titled "Our kids are bombed", Amnesty said it investigated five air strikes on schools between August and October, killing five civilians and injuring at least 14, including four children.

"In some cases the schools were struck more than once, suggesting the schools were deliberately targeted," the group said.

It added that students were not inside the schools during the attacks, but the strikes caused serious damage that has disrupted the education of more than 6,500 children in Hajja, Hodeida and Sanaa provinces.

"No evidence could be found in any of the five cases to suggest the schools had been used for military purposes," it added.

Lama Fakih, senior crisis advisor at Amnesty, said: "Schools are central to civilian life, they are meant to offer a safe space for children.

"It is simply appalling that the USA and other allies of the Saudi Arabia-led coalition have continued to authorize arms transfers to members of the coalition," she said.

In November, Washington approved a $1.29-billion deal to replenish the Saudi air force's arsenal.

The order included 6,300 Paveway II and Paveway III laser-guided bombs, 12,000 general purpose bombs weighing and 1,500 devastating "bunker busters" designed to smash hardened concrete structures.

The United Nations says more than 5,700 people have been killed in Yemen, since March. More than 25,000 have been wounded.