The Saudi-led war on Yemen is about to enter its sixth destructive year. According to a recent UN report, the war has already claimed 233,000 lives. It is estimated that 80% of the Yemeni population need humanitarian assistance – some 24 million people.
And who is the main Western backer of the war? Boris Johnson and his Tory government. Even after Joe Biden announced an end to US support for the war the British government shamefully continues to sell bombs and aircraft to the Saudi regime who have created the worst humanitarian crisis on earth.
Join us in two weeks time as we call on the British government to stop prolonging the carnage in Yemen by ending all arms sales and military support for the Saudi-led coalition immediately.
Yemen is facing a major humanitarian crisis. A devastating conflict has left children and families in urgent need of food, water and medical supplies. Currently, 1.71 million children are internally displaced. No place in Yemen is safe for children.
40% of the UK’s weapons sales between 2010 and 2019 went to Saudi Arabia, who are major contributors to the crisis.
An Early Day Motion (EDM), calling on the Government to end all support for the war and suspend all arms sales to Saudi Arabia immediately, has been tabled in the House of Commons
Merseyside MPs Paula Barker (Wavertree), Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside), Dan Carden (Walton) and Mick Whitley (Birkenhead) have already pledged their support, but many other are yet to do so. If your MP hasn’t signed, please get in touch with them as soon as possible. You can find their contact details on the Parliament website at https://members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP
President Joe Biden’s announcement of an end to US support for the war on Yemen and a suspension of arms sales to Saudi Arabia is a welcome change to US foreign policy. Shamefully, the British government continues to support the war which has created the worst humanitarian crisis on earth. The overwhelming majority of those with views oppose the war and oppose arms sales to Saudi Arabia on both sides of the Atlantic.
Following the Biden announcement and the World Says No to War on Yemen Global Day of Action involving tens of thousands of people in 28 countries, Stop the War is stepping up its campaign to demand the British government ends all support for the war and all arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Stop the War Convenor, Lindsey German, said: ‘The crisis in Yemen which threatens the lives of more than 20 million people is not a natural disaster, it is a direct result of the Saudi-led war of which Britain is now the main western backer. Quite simply, Johnson and Raab have blood on their hands. Their support for the carnage in Yemen must end immediately’.
The shockingly under-reported war in Yemen has led to the death of 250,000 people and created the worst humanitarian crisis anywhere in the world according to the UN. They estimate that more than 24 million people in the country, which was already one of the poorest on the planet prior to the war, will need humanitarian assistance in 2021.
The war is led by Saudi Arabia, with the involvement of the UAE, but it is backed by some key Western powers – the US, the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Canada. In particular, the US and the UK have maintained unquestioning support for Saudi Arabia since the war began and are both participants in the war.
This protest is timed to take place just days after the inauguration of Joe Biden, who has promised to end US support for the war. This is our one central aim – to hold him to his word and force fellow governments to follow suit.
Over 230 organisations from 17 countries have signed up for a call to action against the war on Yemen so far, making this the biggest international anti-war co-ordination since the campaign against the Iraq war. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic many of the planned physical protests have had to be postponed but our global movement will not be silenced.
For the World Says No to War on Yemen Global Online Rally we have brought together a group of prominent voices from across the world to speak out against this utterly brutal war and call for its immediate end.
Amongst those joining us at 7pm GMT on Mon 25th January will be…
Ahmed Al-Babati was filmed with a sign beside him that read ‘I REFUSE TO CONTINUE MY MILITARY SERVICE UNTIL THE DEAL WITH SAUDI COMES TO AN END’ before being led away by military police.
In a pre-recorded statement Al-Babati spelled out his opposition to the continuing sale of arms to the Saudi regime:
“I joined the army in 2017 and took an oath to protect and serve this country, not to be part of a corrupt government that continues to arm and support terrorism. What made this decision so easy for me and why I choose to sacrifice a lot of things including possibly my freedom is for the simple fact that me myself as somebody that was born in Yemen I could have easily fell victim to one of those air strikes or died out of hunger. I’ve seen enough not to speak out and I’d rather sleep peacefully in a cell than stay silent for a paycheck.” We support Al-Babati because we believe that the armed forces should not be pursuing aggressive wars abroad. We urge that no disciplinary action is taken against Al-Babati’s stand of conscience. Please sign and share the petition below in support of his actions.
