Saudi-led airstrike in Yemen kills over one hundred at wedding party

A wedding party in southern Yemen was hit by Saudi-led aerial bombardment Monday, killing up to 135 people, including many women and children. The tents set up for the wedding may have been mistaken for a military encampment.

The bombing campaign is accused of killing many civilians and health facilities have been attacked on several occasions. A recent attack was in January on a Doctors Without Borders clinic. Several cases of cluster bombs being used have been claimed with considerable evidence. Fragments show some of the bombs were made in the U.S. Saudis deny the bombs have been used. The UN has warned that the use of the cluster bombs in populated areas could be a war crime. Since its beginning in early spring last year, the Saudi-led bombing is estimated to have killed more than 3,500 people with aids groups, claiming that perhaps half of the casualties were civilians. The UN claims that in the conflict so far about 6,000 have been killed with about half being civilians. The Saudi coalition attacks have caused massive damage to Yemen's infrastructure. Some military experts question the effectiveness of the bombing campaign. Iran supports the Houthi rebels, who are Shiites, while the majority of Yemenis are Sunni.

The strike on the wedding was just outside the Red Sea port of Mokha. The groom in the ceremony was associated with the rebel Houthis who took over much of western and southern Yemen including Aden but have now been dislodged from the port city and much of the south. However, the Houthis still hold the capital and many surrounding areas.

The Saudis are joined by troops from the UAE and even mercenaries as well as those opposed to the Houthis. Al Qaeda in the Arab Peninsula(AQAP) has allied itself with Sunni tribes in some areas to fight the Houthis. But AQAP also fought against the government of Mansour Hadi when it was in power. After being in exile for some time, the Hadi government is now located in Aden.

AQAP has extended its influence and enlarged the area it controls since the conflict started. The Saudi coalition has done little to fight AQAP. No doubt it sees the group as a valuable force to fight against the Houthis. AQAP controls the key coastal city of Mukalla and the province of Hadrawhmat. Recently they captured the key city of Azzan in the province of Shabwa. The U.S. continues drone strikes against AQAP. The Islamic State is also making its presence known in Yemen. Although it does not hold territory it mounts suicide attacks both against the Houthis and the Hadi government. Most recently they attacked the presidential palace in Aden.

While there have been several attempts at establishing a ceasefire and peace talks, so far none have been successful. The Saudis may believe they can achieve a military victory but so far the struggle has simply dragged on with both sides suffering considerable casualties. The conflict is displacing many Yemenis and causing a humanitarian catastrophe.

Another MSF hospital in Yemen hit in Saudi-led bombing in Yemen

A hospital being run by Doctors Without Borders — also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres(MSF) — in Taiz, Yemen was bombed, injuring at least nine people including two staff members.

Two people have life-threatening injuries. The clinic had treated almost 480 patients over the two days before the attack. The injured were transferred to two other hospitals run by MSF.

MSF Director in Yemen, Jerome Alin, insisted there was no way the Saudis could not know the facility was a hospital as they were given the coordinates of their sites on a regular basis, the last time on November 29. Alin emphasized that the bombing of civilians and hospitals is a violation of international humanitarian law.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the bombing and also stressed that "medical facilities and medical personnel are explicitly protected under international humanitarian law." The UN called for an immediate impartial investigation.

In the case of earlier incidents the Saudis have simply denied accusations that they hit areas and facilities that do not contain military targets. However, this time Saudia Arabia says it will investigate the allegations. What is needed is an independent investigation, such as the MSF has recommended in the case of the U.S. bombing in Kunduz. The U.S. was instrumental in helping to block a previously proposed UN investigation into Saudi bombings. The U.S. is also a supplier of bombs to the Saudis with a recent $1.29 billion sale of smart bombs. The US and Afghanistan have so far refused to grant an independent investigation into the Kunduz bombing that killed thirty people even though the military report on the incident is packed with problems and ignores much evidence that the bombing was deliberate.

On October 26, there was another attack by the Saudi-led coalition on an MSF hospital in the northern Sa'ad Governorate. Even though both the UN and the MSF confirmed the airstrikes were carried out by the coalition "beyond doubt," the Saudi authorities simply denied responsibility. The coordinates of the facility had been shared with the Saudis. The area bombed is controlled by the Houthi rebels. No doubt the Saudis do not like the idea of their enemies getting medical treatment. The hospital was attacked for two hours. There was a clearly visible MSF logo on the roof of the facility. As well as hospitals, the Saudi-led coalition is accused of bombing a wedding, an Oxfam aid warehouse, and residential neighborhoods. It has also used cluster bombs that are banned, except that neither the U.S. nor Saudi Arabia have signed on to the ban.

Amnesty International estimates two-thirds of civilian deaths and property destruction in the conflict has been caused by the bombing campaign, which began last March. As of the end of October, the World Health Organization(WHO) reported more than 5,700 people killed with at least 2,615 being civilians and 573 children. Another approximately 27,000 persons have been injured. MSF has treated more than 16,000 patients and operates in 21 different Yemen governorates. MSF provides free health services in more than 70 countries. More and more it appears to be targeted, since one side, almost always the "good guys" such as the US, Afghans, and Saudis resent their enemies receiving treatment. The one exception is an attack by "bad guy" Assad on an MSF hospital in rebel held territory in Syria.

The Saudi-led and U.S.-supported mission in Yemen has devastated the country, with the UN warning that the "health and education systems in the country are on the brink of collapse." Almost 80 percent of Yemen's people are in desperate need of humanitarian aid. U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, claimed in a visit to Saudi Arabia late in November that the bombing and ground invasion is helping "accomplish significant progress in Yemen." The coalition has recaptured the southern port of Aden and surrounding areas and is now fighting for control of the key central city of Taiz but at enormous cost. So far attempts to agree to a ceasefire and peace have fallen through. The coalition is sending many more troops including mercenaries from as far away as Colombia. It appears that the coalition believes it will soon defeat the Houthis. The war has been a huge bonus for jihadist groups particularly Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAM) who have extended their area of control including to Mukalla east of Aden. The Islamic State also is beginning to exhibit its presence with violent attacks.

US blocks attempt by UN to investigate Saudi-led bombings' civilian deaths

The Saudi-led bombing of Yemen that began last March has not only created a great deal of property damage and displaced thousands of people — it has also resulted in many civilian casualties.

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Two recent incidents have resulted in a demand from several sources for an independent inquiry. In one incident, Saudi helicopters are reported to have attacked a village in the north of Yemen killing 30 civilians. In another missile attack on a wedding party, the Guardian reports 131 civilians killed.

At the UN, the Netherlands pushed for a UN investigation into the incidents. However, after the Saudis complained, the US and several other western countries instead voted in favour of a Saudi resolution that would empower their own forces to investigate themselves. The White House said it was "deeply concerned," "shocked and saddened" by reports of the civilian casualties and urged the Saudi-led coalition carrying out the bombing to be precise in its targeting. Ned Price, the White House National Security Council spokesperson said: "We take all credible accounts of civilian deaths very seriously and again call on all sides of the conflict in Yemen to do their utmost to avoid harm to civilians and to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law.We call for an investigation into these reported civilian casualties and for the findings to be reported publicly."

Unlike the Netherlands' resolution, the Saudi resolution would have the coalition do the investigating:The Saudi text calls for an investigation, but empowers the Saudi-led coalition to conduct that investigation, only calling on the UN to offer support to them with “technical assistance,” and then only to the extent they request it.The Saudis have already made it perfectly clear that they deny they had anything to do with the wedding carnage. They say they can prove they made no attacks at the time. The Saudi response to the helicopter incident is similar: A Saudi official said the coalition had played no role in any attack in the area."This is totally false news. We deny it," the official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters, adding that no coalition helicopters operated so far from the border.

As the appended video shows, the Saudi-led coalition evidently has used cluster bombs supplied by the United States in some of its missions. There is an international treating banning the use of the weapons but neither the US nor the Saudis have signed it.