The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen may be responsible for "international crimes", a category that includes war crimes and crimes against humanity, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said Friday.
"We are possibly looking at the commission of international crimes by members of the Coalition," Zeid said in a statement Friday. International crimes includes war crimes, crimes against humanity and grave violations of human rights.
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The U.N. top human rights official also condemned an airstrike in Yemen this week, which targeted a local market and killed at least 106 people, adding that the coalition was "responsible for twice as many civilian casualties as all other forces put together".
320k children under 5 in war-torn #Yemen are at risk of severe acute malnutrition @UNICEF_Yemen pic.twitter.com/KMwdxdyFGU
— UNICEF (@UNICEF) March 19, 2016
Saudi Arabia enjoys diplomatic backing and military help from the United States and other Western powers for its campaign in Yemen.
More than 7,000 people have been killed since the coalition campaign began a year ago in a bid to restore Saudi-allied ex-President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who was ousted by the Ansarullah rebels, also known as Houthis.
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Saudi Arabia and its allies claim Iran is backing the rebels militarily and financially, which Tehran and the Houthis deny.
Saudi airstrikes in Mustaba in northwest Yemen hit an outdoor market and killed more than 100 people according to a provincial health director and a U.N. official in Sanaa, making it one of the deadliest attacks in the war.
Winding down of #Yemen war? Riyadh lies : The capital Sanaa just got hit by 3 large explosions from #Saudi airstrikes.
— Haykal Bafana (@BaFana3) March 18, 2016
"These awful incidents continue to occur with unacceptable regularity. In addition, despite public promises to investigate such incidents, we have yet to see progress in any such investigations," Zeid said in his statement Friday.
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The U.N.’s scathing statement comes amid reports of secret peace talks between the rebels and Saudi Arabia taking place in Riyadh. The talks have been confirmed by Saudi officials who say their operation has been less extensive and could come to an end soon.