Local Editor
Amnesty International called on the authorities in Yemen’s Taiz to hold the perpetrators of child rape into account.
An investigation by the group has revealed that children as young as eight years old have been raped in the city of Taiz. The suspected perpetrators, including members of militias backed by the Saudi Arabia-led Coalition, are yet to be held to account.
“The Yemeni authorities must thoroughly investigate these allegations to signal that these crimes will not be tolerated and to protect the children’s families from reprisal. Suspects, including members of the fighting forces and community leaders in trusted positions, must be brought to justice in fair trials. Rape and sexual assault committed in the context of an armed conflict are war crimes. Commanders who fail to stop such heinous acts can themselves be responsible for war crimes,” said Heba Morayef, Amnesty’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Amnesty International has documented four cases of sexual violence, namely the rape of three children and the attempted sexual assault of a fourth.
Since 2015, Taiz has witnessed intermittent heavy clashes between Yemen’s popular Houthi movement and an amalgamation of forces loyal to the Coalition and the resigned regime, which intensified during 2018.
Four years of conflict have led to the proliferation of militias on the Coalition and the Hadi regime side, with the main ones affiliated with Saudi-backed Islah or Salafist groups.
“The heartbreaking testimonies of these young survivors and their families expose how the ongoing conflict has rendered children vulnerable to being sexually exploited in a city plagued by weak security and institutions. These victims and their families have been left unprotected and alone to face the horrific ordeal of sexual abuse and its aftermath,” said Morayef added.
Source: Yemenwatch.net
