Eryani: Taiz siege puts the will of the international community to a real test

[15/07/2022 08:43]

Aden – Saba
Minister of Information Muammar Al-Eryani, said, "The terrorist Houthi militia's siege on Taiz, now in its eighth year, has turned the largest city into a major prison, is a serious humanitarian issue not a political bargain chip, and subjecting it to political bargaining is a war crime and a crime against humanity."

He said that the Houthi militia has been procrastinating and intransigent in ending the siege on Taiz governorate since the truce took effect, switching between a range of contradicting attitudes from denial of the siege's existence through showing willingness to end it, to threatening, at times, to turn unblocked roads into graves, which reveals the extent of the militia's disregard for international efforts and bigotry toward Taiz province.

Al-Eryani pointed out that the siege has impacted five million civilians in the city restricting the movement of the population; forcing them to take long, bumpy and dangerous roads; causing the death of dozens of them in separate accidents and huge material losses in accidents during the past years; and prevented the entry of relief and humanitarian aid into the overcrowded city.

He said, "The Houthi militia, with its insistence on strangling the city, continues to target civilians in continuous missile and artillery shelling and sniping operations on homes and schools, which caused the deaths of thousands of civilians, including women and children, and made it difficult to reach public interests to secure the simple needs of their families."

Al-Eryani stressed that ending the siege of Taiz is an urgent humanitarian priority that should be achieved immediately without any delay, since Sanaa airport has been reopened for two months now and Hodeidah seaport allowed full operation for three months.

The minister called for the prosecution of the militia leaders responsible for the siege in international courts as and considering the siege a full-fledged war crime.

‎ He pointed out that the international community is facing a real test regarding ending the unjust siege imposed by the terrorist militia, stressing that this humanitarian issue is an integrated and indivisible package, and a real step required for paving the way for comprehensive peace in Yemen.