Int'l community has obligation to probe Yemen violations: UN human rights chief

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights warned Monday that the international community has a "legal and moral duty" to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in war-torn Yemen.

"Since the beginning of this conflict in Yemen, weddings, marketplaces, hospitals, schools and now mourners at a funeral have been hit, resulting in massive civilian casualties and zero accountability for those responsible," Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a written statement.

"The Human Rights Council's inability to take decisive action by setting up an international investigation is contributing to a climate of impunity, and violations continue to occur on a regular basis. Such outrageous attacks cannot be allowed to continue," he added.

The statement follows a deadly strike on a funeral reception held for the father of the acting interior minister and rebel Houthi loyalist Jalal al-Ruwaishan.

The Saudi-led coalition, which the UN agency says has been carrying out a military air campaign against Houthis and the forces of former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh since March 2015, has denied any connection with the bombing.

The attack, which took place on Saturday, resulted in more than 140 deaths and hundreds of wounded.

"The international community has a legal and moral duty to react robustly to the increasingly horrific levels of civilian casualties in Yemen, just as it has in many other situations," Zeid highlighted.

"We take note of the recent letter sent by Saudi Arabia to the Security Council indicating its readiness to take corrective and appropriate measures to ensure accountability, including the release of the results of the ongoing investigations into this incident, in the near future," he added.

Since March last year, at least 4,125 civilians have been killed and a further 7,207 wounded by fighting pitching pro-government forces against Houthi rebels. Endit