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Human rights documentary by Mwatana Organization for Human Rights
Mwatana Organization for Human Rights launched today, its first short documentary film that narrates how two aerial attacks- by Saudi-led coalition- on two distinct weddings’ gatherings have turned civilians’ joys into funerals in the two Yemeni governorates of Taiz and Dhamar.
"Weddings Into Funerals" displays feature of the most prominent humanitarian stories that bear witness on the grave damage inflicted upon Yemeni civilians by Saudi-led coalition jet fighters air strikes which hit civil populated targets, since the outset of Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen on March 26,2015 against the forces of Houthi armed group and the former President Saleh, in response to a request by President Hadi.
The documentary narrates details of a wedding party turned into a heartbreaking tragedy in the remote village of Wahija, Thowbab district, north-west Taiz governorate. 26 civilians were killed included 13 children and 12 women as the coalition’s warplanes dropped two bombs, the first of which has hit nearby men wedding ten while the second hit women ten. The incident occurred approximately between 10.00 and 11.00 a.m. in the morning of September 28,2015.It also recounts how a three-brothers’ wedding party turned into a deep grief in which 40 civilians were killed including 15 children and 14 women, and 42 civilians more were wounded included 14 women and 13 children in the village of Sanaban, Maif`at `Ans district, Dhamar governorate northern Yemen.
The incident occurred on October 7, 2015—in the evening— as an aerial attack by Saudi-led coalition jet fighters hit three-story house in which dozens of civilians gathered from neighboring villages to celebrate the wedding. These air strikes often struck civil targets while civilians were practicing their normal daily life activities in the houses, markets and parks far away from the military sites. As a result, many houses, civilian facilities and infrastructures were damaged. Most importantly, thousands of civilians were killed and injured.
Mwatana Organization for Human Rights verified the death of 800 civilians including 140 women and 270 children, moreover 780 other civilians were wounded among of them 132 are women and 184 are children during (March2015-March 2016) by 59 air strikes carried out by the Saudi-led Arab coalition warplanes in 10 Yemeni governorates. Mwatana Organization for Human Rights has reiterated its call for establishing an independent international mechanism to investigate into all violations of human rights by all parties to the conflict in Yemen.
