Advertising Read more

Paris (AFP)

A rights organisation is taking the United Arab Emirates to the International Criminal Court over allegations of war crimes in Yemen, the group's lawyer told AFP on Monday.

The Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK accuses the UAE government, part of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Huthi rebels in Yemen, of "indiscriminate attacks against civilians", lawyer Joseph Breham said.

The case filed at the international court in The Hague also charges the UAE with using banned weapons in the conflict and hiring mercenaries to carry out torture.

The UAE has been supporting Riyadh-backed Yemeni government forces since March 2015 in their conflict against the rebels, who are backed by Saudi Arabia's regional arch-rival Iran.

The UAE has been playing a key role in the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen, which was launched two years ago to roll back Huthi rebel gains but has expanded to counter jihadist advances.

UN officials say Yemen could face the world's largest famine in decades unless the Saudi-led coalition's crippling blockade on ports and airports is lifted.

UN children's fund UNICEF warned Sunday that more than 11 million children in war-torn Yemen are in desperate need of humanitarian aid.

The devastating war has since killed some 8,600 people, while a further 2,000 have died of cholera.

© 2017 AFP