Local Editor
Saudi Arabia has rejected a United Nations report that criticized the military coalition it is leading in Yemen, saying it was based primarily on information supplied by its adversaries.
On Thursday U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon added the Saudi-led coalition to an annual blacklist of states and armed groups that violate children’s rights during conflicts, saying its air strikes were behind most child deaths in the war.
However, coalition spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asseri said in a statement sent to Reuters late on Sunday that the U.N. had not based enough of its report on information supplied by the Saudi-backed Yemeni regime.
Asseri has criticized reports by international human rights organizations of civilian deaths caused by coalition air strikes as coming after inadequate investigation.
Last week’s U.N. report said the Saudi-led coalition was responsible for 60 percent of child deaths and injuries in Yemen in 2015, killing 510 and wounding 667. It also said the coalition carried out half the attacks on schools and hospitals.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by Website Team
