Yemen issues statement refuting claims by International Organisation for Migration regarding migrant shelter fire

Yemen issues statement refuting claims by International Organisation for Migration regarding migrant shelter fire

The Ministry of Interior in the Salvation Government in Sana’a issued Saturday a statement on the circumstances of the migrant shelter fire in the capital Sana’a, and the results of the investigation.

The statement indicated that international organisations had published misleading statements lacking credibility, to incriminate the Sana’a government and create a file of a humanitarian nature to represent a pressure tool to be added to the political and economic file to force Yemen into the US-Zionist project.”

According to the statement, the ward in which the accident occurred was not a place of detention, contrary to what some human rights organisations have claimed, rather it was a shelter center for providing food.

“The IOM [International Organisation for Migration] representatives are present in the center, while the ministry’s services only supervise it,” the ministry said.

The main reason that increased the loss is the lack of technical specifications or features, in addition to the absence of safety measures, the statement explained, noting that the competent authorities in Sana’a had informed the IOM of the risk in several official letters and meetings.

This belies the claim of the IOM Director-General that his organisation does not establish, manage or supervise what he called “detention centers” in Yemen.

In its statement, the Interior Ministry denied the allegation of the IOM Director-General claiming that the organisation has provided aid of any kind, either during or after the accident.

“The organisation’s role was limited to a statement expressing their deep sadness, in an attempt to evade their flagrant shortcomings, which was one of the causes of the tragedy,” the ministry added