Saudi-led coalition committed around 14,000 truce violations in Yemen
3 Min Read
Violations of the Saudi coalition forces of the armistice include offensive operations, infiltration attempts, and air raids.
-
Smokes rise from the site of a Saudi-led coalition air strike in Sanaa, March 30, 2020 (Reuters)
Al Mayadeen counted 13,859 violations of the armistice in Yemen committed by the Saudi coalition.
Yemen has been under war led by the Saudis for 8 years now. A UN-brokered truce went into force in April but was repeatedly violated by the Saudi-led coalition.
The UN special envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, announced on Thursday that the Sanaa government and the Saudi-led coalition have agreed to renew the armistice in Yemen for two months.
Read more: Saudi coalition violated truce over 5,000 times: Yemeni official
About 3,947 violations were committed by the forces affiliated with the Saudi coalition during the second month of the truce that ended yesterday evening, Thursday, and 5,395 violations during the first month of the truce itself, which included dozens of air raids with reconnaissance aircraft of the Saudi coalition on army and committee sites as well as civilian homes in a number of Yemeni governorates and border fronts.
The Yemeni air defenses were able to shoot down 4 combat drones of the Saudi coalition during the second month of the truce while they were carrying out hostile actions in the airspace of Yemeni regions.
The Yemeni forces also shot down a Turkish-made Karyal drone belonging to the Saudi Air Force, on May 21, and a Chinese-made armed drone belonging to the Saudi Air Force with a locally-made "surface-to-air" missile, on May 23.
Al Mayadeen counted 9,312 violations of the humanitarian and military truce committed by the Saudi-appointed Yemeni Presidential Council forces and the Saudi coalition during the first two months of the truce.
A Yemeni military source told Saba that "The violations of the aggression forces included offensive operations, infiltration attempts, air raids, flights of warplanes, Apache and surveillance drones, missile and artillery targets, and extensive recon with fire using various munition types," pointing to the continuation of the aggression coalition in piracy and siege by detaining and delaying the arrival of oil derivatives ships and preventing flights to and from Sanaa International Airport.
The source stressed that "these violations led to the death and injury of a number of citizens, and damage to their properties and farms."
Saudi coalition forces carried out 78 operations to create new fortifications and roads on the fronts of Al-Hudaydah, Marib, Hajjah, Taiz, Al-Dhalea, and beyond the borders.
The source indicated that 8 offensive operations on the positions of the army and the popular committees on the fronts of Raghwan, Al-Akd, Al-Balaq, Al-Lajma, Al-Faliha, Mahzam Mas, and Harada in the Marib governorate were launched.
On Friday, UN Secretary-General Guterres embraced the truce in Yemen, expressing hope for a political process to bring peace into the country.
"You must take that momentum in order to make sure that this truce is fully respected and that it is renewed and... that a true political process is launched," Guterres told reporters.
"This demonstrates that even when things look impossible when there is the will to compromise, peace becomes possible."
