October 11 marked the official closure of the U.N. Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen (also known as the “Group of Experts”).
For nearly four years, the Group of Experts has been investigating human rights violations in Yemen amidst ongoing conflict, which has resulted in more than 100,000 dead — including over 12,000 civilians — and over 4 million Yeminis displaced since 2014.
Intensified fighting continues to fuel large waves of displacement within the governorate, and sites populated by soaring numbers of refugees are routinely impacted by shelling and airstrikes.
As Yeminis are bludgeoned by Saudi and U.S. air strikes, drone attacks and constant warfare, access to food, shelter, safety, health care and education in the country remains precarious. And disbanding one of the primary international groups dedicated to protecting the basic human rights of Yemenis will only make matters worse.
“This is a major setback for all victims who have suffered serious violations during the armed conflict,” the Group of Experts wrote in a statement the day after the U.N. Human Rights Council refused to extend a mandate for continuation of the group’s work.
“The Council appears to be abandoning the people of Yemen,” the statement says, adding that “Victims of this tragic armed conflict should not be silenced by the decision of a few States.”
Prior to the vote, there were indications that Saudi Arabia and its allies, such as Bahrain (which sits on the U.N. Human Rights Council), had increased lobbying efforts worldwide in a bid to do away with the Group of Experts. Actions of the Saudi-led coalition waging war against Yemen had been examined and reported on by the Group of Experts. Last year, the Saudi bid for a seat on the Human Rights Council was rejected, but Bahrain serves as its proxy.
Bahrain is a notorious human rights violator and a staunch member of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia-led coalition, which buys billions of dollars worth of weaponry from the United States and other countries to bomb Yemen’s infrastructure, kill civilians and displace millions of people.
The Group of Experts’ mission may have reached its end, but the fear and intimidation faced by Yemeni victims and witnesses will continue.
The Yemen Data Project, an independent nonprofit founded in 2016 that collects data on the war in Yemen, tallied the number of air raids this past September and found it had risen to the highest monthly rate since March.
Sirwah, a district in the Marib province, was — for the ninth consecutive month — the most heavily targeted district in Yemen, with 29 air raids recorded throughout September. To get a sense of scale, imagine a district the size of three city neighborhoods being bombed 29 times in one month. Without reports from the Yemen Data Project, the causes of the dire conditions in Sirwah could be shrouded in secrecy.
Intensified fighting continues to fuel large waves of displacement within the governorate, and sites populated by soaring numbers of refugees are routinely impacted by shelling and airstrikes.
I greatly hope The Yemen Data Project and all of the journalists and human rights activists passionately involved in opposing the war that rages in Yemen are recognized and become names that occasion respect, gratitude and support. I hope they’ll continue documenting violations and abuse. But I know their work on the ground in Yemen will now be even more dangerous.
This is a time to increase, not abandon, attention to Yemenis trapped in war zones.
This column was produced for The Progressive magazine and distributed by Tribune News Service.