Two families from Yemen signed a petition accusing the United States of the unlawful killing of 34 of their relatives in counter-terrorism operations between 2013 and 2018. On Tuesday, 26 January, the petition was submitted to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on behalf of the families by the US non-governmental organization Reprieve.
The families of the victims, nine of whom were children, are asking the commission to require immediate action by the US government, to hold accountable those responsible for the killings and to prevent further violence. According to the AFP news agency, seven drone strikes resulted in the unlawful killing of at least 48 civilians, the injuring of several people and the destruction of their properties and livelihoods.
Even though according to local officers some of the victims were suspected members of al-Qaeda, several children lost their lives as a consequence of those drone strikes and their families denied any affiliation with the terrorist group. Over the years, the two Yemeni families have repeatedly urged both the Yemeni and the US government to halt the unlawful killing of civilians, and recurring to the Commission is their last resort.
To read more, please visit:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/28/yemenis-seek-justice-for-unlawful-us-drone-strike-killings
Author: Margherita Curti; Editor: Matteo Consiglio
