US, Saudi must be held accountable for war crimes: Peace activist

The international community must hold the United States and Saudi Arabia accountable for their war crimes and violation of human rights, peace activist in Oregon says.

“It’s important that the global community not back down and turns its attention to calling out governments when they violate international norms and values,” said Leah Bolger, a US Navy veteran who is currently a full-time peace activist and serves as the president of Veterans For Peaceorganization.

“That is something that the entire global community should really be pressing for that every country should abide by international law and when they violate international law should be held to account,” Bolger told Press TV on Wednesday.

She praised a new report by Human Rights Watch that has accused the United States of complicity in the Saudi Arabia’s war of aggression against Yemen.

Human Rights Watch announced on Tuesday that Washington is potentially liable in the unlawful strikes as the US is involved in refueling warplanes flying over Yemen and also in providing targeting information for the Saudis.

The New York-based rights group called on the US to investigate the devastating consequences of Saudi air campaign against the Yemeni people.

It also said that Saudi Arabia could be committing war crimes in Yemen by destroying houses, markets, and schools in addition to killing numerous civilians.

“It’s really been quite some time that the US has been violating international laws and committing war crimes and now Saudi Arabia is doing the same thing,” Bolger pointed out.

“I’m afraid that because Saudi Arabia is a strong ally of the United States, it is not receiving the critical attention and response that it should receive and would receive if another nation committed the same kind of acts,” she added.

Saudi Arabia has been pounding different areas in Yemen since March 26 without any authorization from the United Nations and heedless of international calls for the cessation of its deadly campaign against the impoverished Arab country.

According to the United Nations, over 2,600 Yemeni people have been killed and at least 11,000 others injured in Saudi Arabia’s airstrikes.