UNCHR

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UN Human Rights Council must establish an impartial commission of inquiry for Yemen

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The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNCHR) has the legal authority and supporting precedents to establish an independent international commission of investigation (“CoI”) in respect of the conflict in Yemen. Its failure to do so is completely inconsistent with well-established UN practice.

The 1991 UN General Assembly (UNGA) “Declaration on Fact-finding by the United Nations in the Field of the Maintenance of International Peace and Security” makes clear that “[f]act-finding should be comprehensive, objective, impartial and timely.” The Declaration also recommends “using the United Nations fact-finding capabilities at an early stage in order to contribute to the prevention of disputes and situations.”

The UN Human Rights Council Must Establish an Independent Inquiry into Human Rights Abuses in Yemen

The Yemen Peace Project (YPP) and 56 other NGOs delivered a letter today to the members of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) calling on the Council to create an independent, international inquiry into human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law by all parties to the conflict in Yemen. Yemen is currently facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with 17 million Yemenis facing food insecurity, thousands of Yemenis killed by violence, and over three million displaced by conflict. All sides to the conflict exacerbate the humanitarian crisis by indiscriminately targeting civilians and vital civilian infrastructure, blocking the distribution of humanitarian aid, and committing other human rights abuses such as recruiting child soldiers and arbitrarily detaining journalists and members of civil society. The UNHRC must establish an independent, international inquiry into these abuses and violations of international humanitarian law in order to establish accountability and deliver justice to the victims of the conflict.