Forty German organisations and associations have sent a letter to Chancellor Angela Merkel and her current government ministers and to the heads of the Free Democratic Party and the Green Party, calling for a “comprehensive ban on arms exports to the war coalition in Yemen.”
In a message, organisations and associations working in the field of peace, environment and development stressed the need to continue the current restrictions imposed on the export of weapons and military equipment and make them permanent, given the suffering of millions of civilians in Yemen from the scourge of the Saudi-led war for nearly seven years.
The associations, including Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, the Catholic Charitable Association Caritas, and the “Stop the Arms Trade” organisation, made an appeal saying that “A comprehensive and unlimited arms embargo must be imposed on all parties to the Saudi-led war on Yemen, as long as those parties are involved in killing civilians, and as long as there is a risk that German weapons will also contribute to violations of human rights and international laws in Yemen.”
They added “There should also be no exceptions, such as re-exports, European cooperation or export operations.”
The organisations demanded that the suspension of exports be comprehensive for all parties without exception, and that it not only apply to Saudi Arabia, while the rest of the coalition parties involved in the war would be excluded from it.
The statement pointed out that the war destroyed the livelihoods of 24 million people, including 11 million children, the majority of whom depend on aid, while the fighting has already claimed the lives of over 100,000 people and displaced four million from their homes.
