MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the situation in Yemen
6.7.2015 - (2015/2760(RSP))
pursuant to Rule 123(2) of the Rules of Procedure
Marietje Schaake, Nedzhmi Ali, Petras Auštrevičius, Beatriz Becerra Basterrechea, Izaskun Bilbao Barandica, Dita Charanzová, Gérard Deprez, Marielle de Sarnez, Martina Dlabajová, José Inácio Faria, Antanas Guoga, Petr Ježek, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, Louis Michel, Urmas Paet, Maite Pagazaurtundúa Ruiz, Jozo Radoš, Frédérique Ries, Hannu Takkula, Pavel Telička, Ramon Tremosa i Balcells, Ivo Vajgl, Johannes Cornelis van Baalen on behalf of the ALDE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B8-0680/2015
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Yemen,
– having regard to the statements by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (VP/HR), Federica Mogherini, on Yemen, in particular that of 9 June 2015 on the possible resumption of UN-led talks on Yemen in Geneva on 14 June, and the joint statement by the VP/HR and the Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid Crisis Management, Christos Stylianides, of 11 May 2015 on the proposed truce in Yemen,
– having regard to the Foreign Affairs Council conclusions on Yemen, in particular those of 20 April 2015,
– having regard to the European Council conclusions of 8 June 2015 on ‘Yemen: EU implements UN sanctions against Houthi leader and son of ex-President Saleh’,
– having regard to the Security Council press statement of 2 June 2015 on the situation in Yemen,
– having regard to the Peace and National Partnership Agreement of 21 September 2014, the National Dialogue Conference Outcomes of 25 January 2014 and the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative of 21 November 2011,
– having regard to United Nations Security Council resolutions 2051 (2012), 2201 (2015), 2204 (2015) and 2216 (2015) on Yemen,
– having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the recent escalation of the violence in Yemen, the Saudi-led military intervention, including the use of cluster bombs, and the ongoing political, security, economic and humanitarian challenges, which affect the population across the country, have serious implications for the region and constitute a threat to international peace and security; whereas the Yemeni civilian population, already affected by dire living conditions, are the main victims of the current military escalation;
B. whereas the humanitarian impact on the civilian population of the ongoing fighting between different militias, bombardments and disruption of essential services is reaching alarming proportions;
C. whereas the main conflict in Yemen is between those loyal to the beleaguered President, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and those allied to Zaidi Shia rebels known as Houthis; whereas President Hadi and the Houthis are opposed by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has staged numerous deadly attacks from its strongholds in the south and south-east; whereas Yemen is seen as the backdrop for a wider conflict which appears to be a proxy war between Sunni Muslim states such as Saudi Arabia and Shi’ite Iran; whereas on 25 March 2015 President Hadi fled to Saudi Arabia; whereas Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen is gaining from the conflict;
D. whereas, since 26 March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition which includes Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates is intervening militarily in the country, launching air strikes on Houthi targets and, in so doing, supporting the internationally recognised Yemeni Government in its fight against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels; whereas the Saudi-led coalition is reportedly using internationally banned cluster bombs in Yemen and whereas this is currently being investigated by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights;
E. whereas according to the UN almost 5 000 people have been killed and about 10 000 injured since the start of the Saudi-led bombing campaign, many of them civilians, with hundreds of women and children among the victims;
F. whereas on 1 July 2015 the UN declared Yemen a level three emergency, the highest on the scale; whereas, under the emergency plan, the UN will try to reach 11.7 million people most in need; whereas the health system is said to be facing ‘imminent collapse’, with the closure of at least 160 health facilities, due to insecurity, lack of fuel and supplies;
G. whereas humanitarian organisations have relocated most international staff outside Yemen due to the deteriorating security situation in the country; whereas the air and sea blockade is restricting imports of fuel and food supplies as well as vital humanitarian aid; whereas the arbitrary denial of humanitarian access and depriving civilians of objects indispensable to their survival constitute violations of international humanitarian law;
H. whereas Yemen is one of the poorest countries in the Middle East, with high rates of unemployment, illiteracy and an absence of basic services; whereas 20 million people are currently in need of humanitarian assistance, including an estimated 9.4 million Yemeni children, over 250 000 refugees and 335 000 internally displaced persons;
I. whereas, according to international organisations, the Houthi armed group has intensified its recruitment, training and deployment of children in Yemen, thereby violating international law; whereas, according to UNICEF, children comprise up to a third of all fighters in Yemen, at least 140 having been recruited between 26 March and 24 April 2015 alone; whereas in 2014, 156 children were confirmed to have been recruited and used in armed groups; whereas in 2015 the number has already doubled; whereas, according to UNICEF, by 16 June 2015 the number of children killed was four times more than the number of children killed in 2014;
J. whereas the old city of Sana’a, a World Heritage Site which is the symbol of a millennial history of knowledge, and the ancient city of Marib were bombarded and the latter completely destroyed by an airstrike; whereas this destruction came just one week after the National Museum in Dhamar, containing some 12 500 artefacts which bear witness to the rich cultural heritage of the surrounding region, was destroyed; whereas many other historical sites are suffering collateral damage from the armed conflict in Yemen; whereas the acts of destruction of archaeological and cultural heritage have been considered, under certain circumstances, as crimes against humanity and ‘cultural cleansing’, and amount to a war crime according to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court;
K. whereas the airstrike carried out on 30 March 2015 by the Saudi-led coalition on Al-Marzaq Camp in Hajjah, which mainly hosted displaced persons, killed at least 40 people, and whereas 29 people were dead by the time medical assistance reached them, among them women and children, and at least 200 people were wounded;
L. whereas several mosques were hit in a series of explosions caused by ISIS/Daesh on 17 June 2015 in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, resulting in dozens of casualties; whereas the car bomb attacks killed or injured at least 50 people near mosques and hit the headquarters of Yemen’s dominant Houthi group in Sana’a; whereas this attack is the most serious of its kind in Yemen since suicide bombers killed at least 137 worshippers and wounded hundreds during Friday prayers at two mosques in Sana’a on 20 March 2015, in attacks also claimed by ISIS/Daesh;
M. whereas on 15 June 2015, in view of the UN peace talks, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for a renewed humanitarian pause for at least two weeks during Ramadan, to allow critical assistance to reach all Yemenis in need; whereas, however, no agreement was reached; whereas on 19 June 2015 Yemen’s warring parties failed to reach a ceasefire agreement during diplomatic talks brokered by UN Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed;
N. whereas the Yemeni people deserve democratic and unitary institutions that correspond to their legitimate aspirations; whereas the conflict in Yemen is deeply rooted in sentiments of neglect, inequality and poverty, which have aggravated the deep tribal and regional fractures that run through Yemeni society;
O. whereas, in 2015, the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) has allocated EUR 25 million to assist communities across the country affected by acute malnutrition, conflict and forced displacement; whereas, in 2014, total EU funding, from Member States and the Commission combined, for humanitarian assistance in Yemen amounted to EUR 100.8 million, of which EUR 33 million was from ECHO;
P. whereas the European Union has imposed an arms embargo and further targeted sanctions against a Houthi leader and the son of ex-President Saleh, reflecting the decision taken in UN Security Council resolution 2216 (2015) of 14 April 2015; whereas two additional Yemeni individuals have been targeted by a travel ban and an asset freeze in response to their actions against peace and stability in Yemen;
Q. whereas the international community must provide a proportional response to military efforts, aimed at mitigating the suffering of civilians trapped by the conflict; whereas justice and reconciliation will be needed as part of post-conflict measures and as a step towards building inclusive, representative and democratic governance; whereas the humanitarian situation will continue to deteriorate in the absence of a political solution;
1. Expresses its concern at the ongoing fighting and fast deteriorating political, security and humanitarian situation in Yemen, which is resulting in significant numbers of casualties and causing the destruction of homes and infrastructure, and forced displacement across the country, with grave risks for the stability of the region, in particular for that of the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea and the wider Middle East and in terms of the ability of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and ISIS to benefit from this situation in Yemen; expresses its deep sympathy to the victims of the Yemeni conflict and reiterates its strong commitment to continue supporting the transition in Yemen and the Yemeni people;
2. Condemns in the strongest terms the recent wave of violence and terrorist attacks by the Houthis and other military units loyal to ex-President Saleh, which are aggravating and destabilising the already fragile situation in the country; condemns the attacks on hospitals and medical facilities, especially those under a special protected status, and the deliberate targeting and destruction of private homes, education facilities and basic infrastructure; condemns the recruitment and use of children by the parties to the conflict;
3. Urges all the Yemeni parties, in particular the Houthis, to put an end to the violence immediately and unconditionally, to safely release all political prisoners and all individuals under house arrest or in arbitrary detention and to end the recruitment and use of children;
4. Urges all the parties to respect international humanitarian law and international human rights law and to facilitate the urgent delivery of humanitarian assistance, as well as rapid, safe and unhindered access for humanitarian actors to people in need of humanitarian assistance, including medical assistance, in accordance with the principles of impartiality, neutrality and independence;
5. Supports the efforts of UN Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed and urges all the parties to reach an agreement on local ceasefires, with the withdrawal of armed groups from cities and a pathway towards a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire throughout the country;
6. Regrets the lack of agreement on the UN-brokered peace talks and urges all stakeholders to create the conditions for a return as soon as possible, without preconditions and in good faith, to UN inclusive political consultations; stresses that only a broad political consensus achieved through inclusive negotiations can provide a sustainable solution, restore peace and preserve the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Yemen;
7. Underlines the importance of the Yemeni transition through the full implementation of the framework provided by the Peace and National Partnership Agreement, including its security annex, the National Dialogue Conference Outcomes and the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative and Implementation Mechanism;
8. Calls on all sides to ensure the protection of civilians as a primary responsibility and to protect the cultural heritage during the conflict by avoiding the direct targeting of civilian infrastructure, in particular medical facilities and water systems and the use of civilian buildings for military purposes;
9. Welcomes the progress made in the Constitution Drafting Committee and calls on all the committee’s members to draft an inclusive, transparent constitution which meets the legitimate aspirations of the Yemeni people and reflects the National Dialogue Conference’s outcomes, and to hold a referendum on the draft constitution and timely general elections, in order to avoid a further deterioration of the humanitarian and security situation in Yemen;
10. Recalls its concern at the slow pace of economic recovery in Yemen, and urges all political actors to undertake the much needed economic and political reforms, to engage in the fight against corruption in public administration and to improve the living conditions of the Yemeni people; notes that any reform plan should be based on both long-term approaches to deal with structural dysfunctions and short-term ones to tackle the pressing issues affecting the daily lives of the Yemeni people;
11. Calls for the independent investigation of all alleged violations of international human rights and international humanitarian law, stresses the need for coordinated humanitarian action under UN leadership, and urges all countries to contribute to addressing humanitarian needs;
12. Urges the Saudi-led coalition to stop using the banned cluster bombs which are harmful to civilians, and to ratify the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which prohibits their use;
13. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council, the Commission, the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Government and Council of Representatives of Yemen, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the UN Human Rights Council and all the parties involved in the conflict in Yemen.