Yemen: Coalition used UK cruise missile in unlawful airstrike
| Publisher | Amnesty International |
| Publication Date | 25 November 2015 |
| Cite as | Amnesty International, Yemen: Coalition used UK cruise missile in unlawful airstrike, 25 November 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5656ab8c4.html [accessed 29 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The Saudi Arabia-led coalition used a British-made cruise missile to destroy a Yemeni ceramics factory, a civilian object, on 23 September, 2015, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today, based on field research and interviews with eyewitnesses at the scene.
The attack on the factory in the Sana'a governorate, which appeared to be producing only civilian goods, killed one person, and was in apparent violation of international humanitarian law (IHL), the laws of war.
This strike, using a British missile supplied in the 1990s, undermines the claim of Ministers that the Saudi Arabia-led coalition's use of UK military equipment is consistent with IHL, and that the UK monitors such compliance "very carefully". The organizations are unaware of any credible coalition investigation into this or other apparently unlawful airstrikes for possible IHL violations.
"The UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond claims he favours 'proper investigations' into possible breaches of the laws of war in Yemen. This strike provides a perfect test case - the UK should urgently press the Saudi Arabia-led coalition to open a credible investigation into this strike, as well as others that appear to have violated the laws of war," said Lama Fakih, Senior Crisis Advisor at Amnesty International.
"The latest revelations show UK policy to be both misleading and seriously ineffective. Despite multiple, well-documented cases of violations of the laws of war by the Gulf coalition in Yemen, UK Ministers have consistently refused to acknowledge this. The UK should suspend further sales of aerial munitions to coalition members pending a thorough investigation into this case, and other apparently unlawful air strikes," said David Mepham, UK Director at Human Rights Watch.
