MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the humanitarian and political situation in Yemen

B9‑0129/2021

European Parliament resolution on the humanitarian and political situation in Yemen

(2021/2539(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Yemen,

– having regard to the Council conclusions of 25 June 2018 and 18 February 2019 on the situation in Yemen,

– having regard to the statement of 19 December 2020 by the spokesperson of the European External Action Service on the formation of the new Government,

– having regard to United Nations Security Council resolutions on the situation in Yemen,

– having regard to the Spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General’s note to correspondents of 2 February 2021 entitled ‘Update on preparations of the UN technical mission to the SAFER oil tanker’,

– having regard to the briefing by the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Yemen to the United Nations Security Council of 14 January 2021,

– having regard to the statement by the World Food Programme Executive Director to the United Nations Security Council of 14 January 2021,

– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948,

– having regard to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the additional protocols thereto,

– having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1989, and to its Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict of 2000,

– having regard to the UN Convention of 10 October 1980 on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which may be deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to have Indiscriminate Effects,

– having regard to the UN Convention of 18 September 1997 on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production, and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction,

– having regard to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,

– having regard to the decision of the UN Human Rights Council of September 2017 to investigate all alleged human rights abuses in Yemen during the conflict,

– having regard to Rule 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the conflict in Yemen broke out in 2014 when Iranian-backed Houthi insurgents took control of the capital city, Sana’a, and was further ignited when they ousted the country’s internationally recognised president in 2015, drawing in a multinational coalition led by Saudi Arabia to fight the Houthi insurgents; whereas the country has been locked in a bitter proxy war between Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia ever since;

B. whereas the six and a half years of war in Yemen have created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with the COVID-19 pandemic aggravating an already dire and alarming situation; whereas renewed violence near Hodeidah has further disrupted deliveries of much-needed humanitarian assistance to the country; whereas the UN’s efforts to establish long-lasting peace in the country have unfortunately been unsuccessful to date;

C. whereas the war has led to the collapse of Yemen’s infrastructure and economy and has left an estimated 24.4 million people – 80 % of the population – in need of humanitarian support, 20 million suffering from severe food insecurity, 9.7 million in a pre-famine situation and at least 3.6 million internally displaced, and has also claimed the lives of 233 000 Yemenis, including 131 000 from indirect causes such as lack of food, health services, sanitation and infrastructure;

D. whereas an estimated 70-80 % of Yemen’s population live in Houthi-controlled territory; whereas the Houthis have weaponised humanitarian aid and prevented civilians from accessing it; whereas in October 2018, Houthis confiscated laptops from World Health Organization staff, believing them to contain proof of corruption and fraud;

E. whereas a report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights concluded that there are ‘reasonable grounds to believe’ that all parties to the conflict in Yemen may have committed war crimes; whereas both sides have been accused of firing missiles on populated areas, including on hospitals; whereas Houthi insurgents have deliberately positioned artillery and rockets next to hospitals and schools; whereas the UN Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen has called on the UN Security Council to refer this case to the International Criminal Court and to expand the list of persons subject to UN Security Council sanctions;

F. whereas the UN Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen provided details of endemic impunity for serious violations of international humanitarian law, including air strikes that failed to abide by the principles of distinction and proportionality, arbitrary detentions, torture and enforced disappearances, assaults on civil society and religious minorities, gender-based violence, the Houthis’ use of child soldiers – some as young as seven years old – and the recruitment of teenage girls as spies, guards and medics;

G. whereas Yemen’s former Minister for Human Rights Hooria Mashhour reported that women in Sana’a are intentionally being fired from their jobs on the basis of a new Houthi rule that excludes women from public life because their participation in it would allegedly contradict the group’s religious beliefs; whereas Yemeni activists launched a social media campaign with the Arabic hashtag ‘I want my rights’ to condemn the new policy;

H. whereas a stable, peaceful Yemen with a fully functioning Yemeni Government is critical to the country’s future and regional peace and security; whereas since 2015, the European Union has allocated EUR 896 million to the Yemen crisis, including EUR 553 million in humanitarian aid and EUR 318 million in development assistance;

I. whereas on 13 December 2018, a UN-led agreement was reached between the parties to the conflict in Yemen in Stockholm, Sweden, which sought a peaceful settlement to the conflict; whereas the agreement initially reduced levels of violence, but whereas its implementation stalled soon after;

J. whereas on 5 November 2019, an agreement was reached between the Government of the Republic of Yemen and the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to establish a power-sharing government, in an effort to end the power struggle over the south by the STC, which risked further fragmenting the country;

K. whereas on 18 December 2020, the international community welcomed Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s announcement of a new power-sharing cabinet as part of his efforts to implement the Riyadh Agreement as an important breakthrough;

L. whereas a UN Security Council’s Yemen Panel of Experts presented evidence that Iran had violated the arms embargo by supplying weapons to the Houthis; whereas Houthi-held territory has been used to launch Iranian long-rage Sammad-2 and Sammad-3 explosive drones against international airports, oil tankers and infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and the UAE; whereas Iranian Shahed-136 ‘suicide drones’ have been deployed to the northern Houthi-controlled Yemeni province of Al-Jawf;

M. whereas Iran has been behind attacks on ships crossing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s most valuable trade routes, which connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean, thereby risking the safety of freedom of navigation in the strait; whereas the instability in Yemen has led to an ongoing arms trade to countries across the Red Sea in Africa, including Djibouti, South Sudan, Kenya and even as far west as the Central African Republic;

N. whereas the UN Secretary-General’s spokesman stressed the urgency of addressing the humanitarian and environmental threat of one million barrels of oil leaking from the SAFER oil tanker off Ras Issa in Yemen, and also stressed that the UN has still not received a response from the Houthis to its multiple requests for security assurances to be provided for a future UN mission to the area;

O. whereas Daesh and al-Qaeda have exploited the deterioration in Yemen’s political and security situation; whereas on 4 February 2021, the UN stated that the arrest of a senior al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen could provide valuable insight into al-Qaeda’s global network; whereas the Lebanese Shi’a terrorist group Hezbollah has trained and overseen Houthi rebel units and whereas several of its members have been killed in Yemen;

P. whereas in February 2018 Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution highlighting Iran’s involvement in the conflict, its arms embargo violations and its failure to prevent the transfer of banned weapons to Houthi rebels;

1. Expresses grave concern at the continuing decline of the humanitarian and political situation in Yemen and its devastating impact on civilians; insists that all parties to the conflict must fulfil their obligations under international humanitarian law by allowing civilians unhindered access to humanitarian goods and permitting medical evacuations;

2. Reminds all parties to the conflict that hospital and medical personnel are explicitly protected under international humanitarian law, and that the deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure constitutes a war crime; condemns the many human rights abuses reported in the country, urgently demands independent investigations into the crimes and calls for those found guilty to be held accountable;

3. Believes that sustainable and inclusive peace in Yemen can only be achieved through negotiations with the meaningful participation of all parties, and supports an immediate resumption of talks under the auspices of the UN; reiterates its support for the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Yemen, Martin Griffiths; welcomes the US’s support for the UN initiative to impose a ceasefire, open humanitarian channels and restore peace talks, and welcomes the recent appointment of Timothy Lenderking as the US Special Envoy to Yemen;

4. Welcomes Saudi Arabia’s large contribution to humanitarian aid for Yemen; notes the kingdom’s commitments to avoid civilian casualties and protect civilian infrastructure in accordance with the principles of international humanitarian law;

5. Strongly condemns the use of missiles and explosive drones and demands an end to the firing of them by the Houthis on Saudi Arabia and the UAE; condemns the transfer of Iranian weapons to the Houthi rebels, including advanced Iranian Shahed-136 ‘suicide drones’, and expresses grave concern about their deployment; reiterates that the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, including in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, must be respected at all times; stresses the urgency of addressing the grave humanitarian and environmental threat posed by the SAFER oil tanker;

6. Deplores reports of the use of child soldiers in Yemen by the Houthis and reminds all parties of their responsibilities under international laws and conventions; calls for the release of all child soldiers involved in the conflict so they can be provided with the support they need to become positive members and leaders of Yemeni society now and in the future;

7. Expresses grave concerns about reports of the denial of freedom of religion or belief in Yemen, including discrimination, unlawful detention and the use of violence; calls on all parties to respect and protect the rights to freedom of religion and belief;

8. Expresses deep concern about reports of women being intentionally fired from their jobs in Sana’a on the basis of new Houthi rules stating that the participation of women in public life contradicts the group’s religious beliefs; stresses that women have the right to work and expresses its support for the Yemeni women and activists demanding their rights on social media;

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the European External Action Service, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the President of Yemen, the Yemeni House of Representatives, and the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council.