KSA: UN report based on Houthi version

 The Kingdom has denounced the UN report which included the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen on the blacklist of child rights violators.

“The coalition has sought to protect the Yemeni people, including children, from the Houthi militias,” said Brig. Gen. Ahmed Al-Assiri, spokesman for the coalition, during an interview with Al-Arabiya TV. 
“Coalition actions have been authorized by the legitimate government recognized internationally by UN Resolution 2016.”
On the inclusion of the coalition in the UN report along with the Houthi militias, Al-Assiri said: “It is unfortunate that the report equates international legitimacy and the legitimacy of the government with the terrorist militias which are the main reason for Yemen’s instability and chaos. The UN should support the legitimacy of the Yemeni government and should not rely on information from sources close to the Houthi militias.” 
According to Al-Assiri, the coalition has, since the very beginning of operations, tried to deal positively with all UN institutions and organizations in order to develop programs aimed at protecting Yemenis, including children.
“The UN report, unfortunately, did not include statistics provided by the legitimate Yemeni government. The UN report did not take into account details of how the Houthi militias used child soldiers and how many children were killed by land mines and from transporting caches of explosives.”
The report is not balanced and is not based on facts, he said. “It does not help the Yemeni people and its inaccuracies mislead public opinion,” he said. “The report is principally based on information provided by the Houthi militias and the ousted leader, Ali Abdullah Saleh.”
He said the report contradicted the UN resolution which declared revolutions and revolutionaries unlawful.
Al-Assiri said that because of the release of this negative report, the ongoing consultations in Kuwait were weakened and that the coalition’s positive efforts were diminished. 
He also denounced the report for ignoring Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and said that either deliberately or unintentionally, the efforts of the coalition in eliminating Al-Qaeda in Yemen and liberating the country and restoring life there was ignored.

Source: Arab News