Al-Thawra Net
UN diplomatic sources say that Saudi Arabia is yet to provide sufficient proof for its permanent removal from a blacklist of children’s rights violators.
One of sources was quoted by Reuters on Monday as saying that the UN still requires “more specifics,” from the Saudis and that their presented examples of commitment to international humanitarian law are “too general.”
Another source noted that a letter recently sent to the UN by Saudi Arabia in relation to the blacklist does not address yet all of our concerns.”
On the other hand, Saudi UN Ambassador Abdallah Al-Mouallimi said that, “We think we sent a fairly comprehensive letter that I hope has served to address all the concerns of UN and clarify all issues surrounding the report by the UN.”
In early June, the UN published a report which said Saudi Arabia was responsible for 60 percent of the 785 child deaths in Yemen last year.
On June 6, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon removed the kingdom from the list and announced that he had accepted “a proposal by Saudi Arabia that the United Nations and the Saudi-led coalition review jointly the cases and numbers” cited in the report.
Ban later admitted that he had taken Saudi Arabia off the blacklist after the kingdom and its allies threatened to cut off funding to UN humanitarian programs.
About 10,000 people have been killed since the conflict in Yemen began in early 2015. Yemenis say most of those dead have been civilians killed in Saudi air strikes. The attacks by Riyadh are meant to reinstate the resigned president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi.
