Amnesty International urges Britain to suspend arms sales to Saudi-UAE alliance

Amnesty International has launched a petition calling for a worldwide ban on arms sales to Saudi-led coalition forces in light of the growing humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

The rights group has handed the petition, signed by 56,000 people from around the world, to the British government - one of the coalition's leading arms suppliers.

“While UK arms companies are making money, Yemeni civilians are dying in their thousands. It’s shameful and it’s got to stop,” said Kate Allen, Amnesty International UK’s Director.

Amnesty International have been campaigning for an immediate arms embargo on all actors involved in the conflict following a UN report in 2018 accusing the UAE and Saudi Arabia of gross human rights violations and possible war crimes.  

Monday, 18 March marked four years since the onset of the Saudi-led coalition's offensive in Yemen. Since then, at least 6,800 civilians have been killed – with thousands more injured – largely as a result of Saudi Arabia-led Coalition airstrikes, according to the latest UN estimates.