New report throws light on Houthi crimes in Hajour

Ali Rajab

A new report has come to shed light on the atrocities the terrorist Houthi militia perpetrated in Hajour District, seven months after the militia suppressed the uprising of the residents of the northwestern province of Hajjah.

The report describes these atrocities as “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity”.

Hajour District residents rose up in arms against the Houthis in February and March this year. However, the Houthi suppression of the rebellion left hundreds of district residents dead and injured.

The report, released by the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms, throws light on the horrifying crimes committed by the Houthi militia against civilians in the district.

The team of the network has documented 11,384 human rights violations by the Houthis in the district in the period between January 1, 2019 and April 20, 2019.

These violations amount to war crimes, the report says.

It lashed out at the international community for falling silent while all these crimes were committed against the people of Yemen.

Flagrant violations

According to the report, the crimes committed by the Houthis against the residents of Hajour ranged between premeditated murder, physical abuse, detentions, kidnapping, enforced disappearance and eviction.

It adds that the crimes also included the demolition of homes, children’s rights violations, blowing up and ransacking medical facilities and historical sites and torture.

The team of the network documented 128 cases of murder, including 97 cases of civilians, 14 cases of women and 17 cases of children.

The team also documented 647 injuries, including 49 of children, 37 of women and 561 of civilians.

There were also 25 cases of torture of detainees, according to the report. It said there were 356 cases of arbitrary arrest as well.

The team of the network, meanwhile, documented 748 violations against private properties in the district, including 25 cases in which the Houthis blew up homes, 68 cases in which they raided and searched homes and 202 cases in which they set other homes on fire.

The report is part of a large file on the crimes committed by the Houthis against the residents in Hajour, said Kamel al-Khawzani, a leading member in the General Public Congress Party.

He called in an interview with The Reference for filing a lawsuit at international courts against the Houthis.