Human rights organizations criticize France sending arms shipment to Saudi Arabia

Human rights organizations reported that a cargo ship intends to dock soon in a French port to load weapons designated for the Saudi-led coalition on Yemen, and urged French officials to

Human rights organizations reported that a cargo ship intends to dock soon in a French port to load weapons designated for the Saudi-led coalition on Yemen, and urged French officials to ensure that these weapons are not used against civilians.

These organizations succeeded in preventing the same ship, which bears the name “Bahri Yanbu”, from anchoring in France last May, when it was preparing to receive a shipment of weapons to Riyadh, angering activists.

France is under severe criticism for continuing to sell weapons to the Saudi government, while the latter continues its aggressive operation that has continued for five years against the Yemenis.

This aggression has caused the deaths of thousands, most of them civilians, according to human rights organizations, and the United Nations has classified the Yemeni war as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Some 17 non-governmental organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Oxfam France, said that a sea ship stems from the dock in the port of Cherbour on the northern coast of France on Thursday, and that it will stop at the ports of Chernas in Britain and Genoa in Italy.

The organizations called on France to determine what will be loaded on board the ship, which is said to be contracted exclusively with the Saudi Ministry of Defense.

In the event that the load is weapons, human rights organizations demand France guarantees that it will not be used illegally against Yemeni civilians.

French President Emmanuel Macron described Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which is participating in the war against the Yemenis, as allies of his country in the war against terrorism.