War torn Yemen suffers from what the UN calls “the worst humanitarian crisis of our times.” Thousands of civilians have been killed and wounded during fighting, and millions more suffer from hunger and disease. We believe that all parties to the armed conflict are responsible for serious violations of international humanitarian law, some of which may amount to war crimes.

Two of the largest customers of the European arms industry – Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – lead a military coalition (the 'Coalition') that has arguably carried out scores of indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on civilians’ homes, markets, hospitals, schools, and cultural heritage.

Despite the many documented serious violations of international humanitarian law in Yemen, countries like Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom (UK) have continued to export arms, components, and spare parts as well as provide maintenance, training and support services to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Military aircraft and (guided) bombs from Europe comprise a substantial part of the Coalition’s war arsenal. Based on evidence collected by reputable international organizations some remnants of the exported arms have been found on the sites of the air strikes.

In a historic step, on 11 December 2019, a communication ('the Communication') on the situation in Yemen and the role of European companies as well as government actors was submitted to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) along with its partner organisations Mwatana for Human Rights from Yemen (Mwatana), the International Secretariat of Amnesty International (Amnesty), the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) based in the United Kingdom, Centre d'Estudis per la Pau J.M. Delàs (Centre Delàs) from Spain and Osservatorio Permanente sulle Armi Leggere e le Politiche di Sicurezza e Difesa (O.P.A.L.) from Italy.

We believe that bringing European economic and political actors before the ICC to investigate their potential involvement in alleged war crimes committed by the Coalition in Yemen is one avenue in the quest for justice. With this ground-breaking Communication to the ICC, ECCHR and its partners are challenging the role that European economic and political actors play in Yemen. Arms exports to Coalition members fuel the armed conflict in Yemen, and should be stopped.