At least five children killed in blast in southwest Yemen
The circumstances surrounding the incident late on Friday in the al-Hashmah subdistrict of Taiz province remain unclear.
However, on Saturday, the Yemen Center for Human Rights and another rights group called Eye of Humanity, along with Houthi-controlled Al Masirah TV, said an artillery shell was fired by militias backed by the Islah party, which is allied to the internationally recognised government in south Yemen.
Two local residents who were witnesses, Ahmed al-Sharee and Khaled al-Areki, told The Associated Press news agency that the children were playing football when the explosion happened.
At least three people with minor to moderate injuries were also taken to the hospital, according to the witnesses. Meanwhile, Mahmoud al-Mansi, another witness, said the explosive was directed from an area where forces allied with the Islah party were present.
A spokesperson for the United Nations children's agency, UNICEF, told The Associated Press that they are aware of reports about the incident but can't verify the facts at the moment.
The Yemen Center for Human Rights condemned the incident in a report that included graphic photos of the children's torn bodies. Citing healthcare sources at al-Rafai Hospital, where the victims arrived unresponsive, the group said they died from shrapnel injuries.
Two of the children were 12 years old, while two others were 14 years old, according to the group. The age of the fifth child is unknown.
Taiz city, the capital of the province of Taiz, has been a battleground, pitting the Houthis against other armed groups backed by the Islah party against each other and other factions in Yemen's civil war.
The city was under Houthi blockade since 2016, restricting the freedom of movement and flow of essential goods to residents, but Houthis recently opened key roads.
Yemen's ruinous civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen, forcing the internationally recognised government into exile.
A coalition led by Saudi Arabia and including the United Arab Emirates intervened in 2015 to try to restore the government to power.
Years of UN-brokered peace talks have also failed to break the deadlock. But the conflict has been largely frozen since the sides reached a ceasefire in 2022.
The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council controls much of the south, which has been fractured by the civil war. The council advocates for the south's secession and has its own forces, allied to the internationally recognised government, fighting the Houthis.
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Al Jazeera
3 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
UN experts cast blame on Rwanda and Uganda. What are they doing in DRC?
Kampala, Uganda – Rwanda is in 'command and control' of M23 rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda has 'unilaterally doubled its military presence' in the DRC, and armed groups – including those aligned to the Congolese government – are committing rights violations against civilians, according to a group of United Nations experts. An as-yet unpublished report from UN experts on DRC that was leaked to the media and seen by Al Jazeera describes violations by all parties to the conflict and blames neighbouring governments for allegedly exploiting and escalating the current crisis. The report was submitted to the UN Security Council in May, the Reuters news agency reported. It is expected to be released soon, a UN expert who contributed to the report told Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity, without specifying a date. While analysts see these reports as an essential tool of accountability, Kigali and Kampala have called the experts biased. Neither government replied to Al Jazeera's request for comment about the contents of the report, but both have repeatedly denied the accusations levelled against them. Meanwhile, the new findings risk putting a damper on the cautious optimism garnered by the signing of a peace deal between Rwanda and the DRC in the US last month, and ongoing Qatar-mediated peace talks between Kinshasa and M23. Rwanda's 'instruction', control of resources For years, M23, which the UN says is backed by Rwanda – a charge Kigali denies – has been embroiled in conflict with the Congolese army and its allied militias known as Wazalendo. Early this year, M23 made rapid advances, seizing control of Goma and Bukavu, the capitals of North Kivu and South Kivu, respectively, which it still holds today. The latest UN experts report – the first since M23's advance – offers a stark assessment of the conflict, placing blame on Rwanda for facilitating the rapid expansion of the rebel forces. 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'The very ones who burned the [house] are the ones in the seat to judge and prosecute.' The report by UN experts, however, only reasserted its criticism of Kigali. The Rwandan army's 'de facto direction and effective control' over M23's operations 'render Rwanda liable for the actions' of the group, the report said, arguing that Rwanda's conduct meets the threshold for international sanctions. Last month's US-brokered deal between the DRC and Rwanda does not include M23, but it stipulates that all parties should comply with the Qatar peace process. It also highlights that the Congolese government should facilitate the disengagement of the armed group, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which was established by Hutus linked to the killings of Tutsis in the 1994 Rwanda genocide. Rwanda should then lift its 'defensive measures' inside the DRC, the agreement said. 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'Some people think there might be some agreement between Kampala and Kigali on their area of interest,' he said. In eastern DRC, 'they are friends and also enemies at the same time,' he added, referring to Uganda and Rwanda. Kinshasa's violations For the UN experts, Kinshasa bears some responsibility, too. On the Congolese side, the report paints a picture of a state under siege, struggling to maintain sovereignty over its eastern territories. The government continued to rely heavily on irregular Wazalendo groups, and on the FDLR, despite the latter being under UN sanctions, as proxies in its fight against M23 and the Rwandan army. While strategic, the report says, this alliance has worsened the security and human rights situation, contributing to reprisal attacks, child recruitment and sexual violence. 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'You will find they never write anything comprehensive about FDLR or how Congolese institutions spread hate and genocide ideology. How can experts not see that?' Speaking to Al Jazeera, Rwandan analyst Thierry Gatete echoed Kagame's criticisms, questioning the credibility of the UN panel and alleging that they rarely conduct field research. 'They sit in New York or Paris and rely on testimonies from Congolese officials or FDLR sympathisers,' he said. The report notes that Rwanda denied the group of experts access to Kigali. However, Gatete says Rwanda initially cooperated with the panel but later gave up because the reports were consistently biased and, in his view, inconsequential. 'Nobody takes what they write seriously,' he said. While Rwanda and Uganda view the UN reports as biased, others see them as essential tools for accountability. 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Al Jazeera
4 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
South Korea to end private adoptions after inquiry finds abuse rife
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Al Jazeera
14 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Top anti-corruption group flees El Salvador amid government crackdown
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