[25/08/2018 06:05]
ADEN-SABA
Yemen's foreign ministry confirmed on Saturday that the previous Thursday's attack that killed and injured several civilians in al-Durayhimi district of Hodeidah was the result of a rocket fired by the Houthi militia.
In a statement, the ministry said it was surprised by the tweets of the UNICEF representative Meritxell Relaño's on Thursday, 23 August, that "four women and all their 22 children and four other children" were killed. The ministry was surprised as well by the statements of the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock and of the UNICEF executive manager which attributed the incident to the Arab Coalition which is backing the Yemeni government against the Houthi rebels.
"Citing information and figures from Houthi-controlled sources, namely the Houthis' self-proclaimed 'Health Ministry', and basing accusations on them is against the principle of impartiality which the UN and its organs follow," read the statement.
"The UNIECF representative drew those information from sources in the Houthi militia, particularly the Health Ministry which is run by the so-called Health Minister, the Houthi leader Taha al-Mutawakkil," it said. "The incident was the result of a rocket attack by the Houthi militia against al-Durayhimi and investigations are still going on to identify the number of victims."
The statement said the UN organizations had previously issued several statements regarding previous incidents drawing information from the Houthi self-proclaimed "Health Ministry" and Houthi-controlled hospitals and organizations "while ignoring contacting the government and the Arab Coalition to verify those information."
The ministry stressed the imperative of the UN organizations' verification of information before publishing them as learnt from the Houthi sources. It stressed the imperative of contacting the government, the Arab Coalition and independent sources so that the UN organization's published news don't end up like a retouched version of the one published by al-Masirah TV and the sisterly media of the Houthis.
Minister al-Kaf Discusses Strengthening Energy Cooperation with British Ambassador
Al-Khanbash: Efforts need to be joined to help IDPs
President al-Alimi: The region's stability contingent on deterring Iranian regime, its armed militias
PM Reviews Work at Foreign Ministry, Chairs Meeting with Department Heads
Prime Minister Receives UNFPA Representative in Aden
President Al-Alimi Orders Urgent Aid for Families of Victims in Hairan Attack
Masam Project Removes 908 Landmines in One Week
Human Rights Orgs. Condemn Houthi Attack That Killed, Injured More Than 30 Civilians in Hajjah
Over 30 civilians killed, injured by Houthi militias attack on Iftar banquet in Hajja
Governors of Lahj, Abyan, al-Dhalea governorates swear-in before President al-Alimi