Children, Notguns
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Children, Not Guns Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns 1A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns Children, Not Guns This report is documenting the victims of child recruitment by the Houthi in Yemen during the first half of 2021 Numbers Names Data Ways Risks Tasks (Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD 2A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns who are we: Mayyun for Human Rights and Development is a Yemeni non-profit organization founded by specialists, jurists and academics with the aim of defending human rights in Yemen, monitoring and professional documentation of violations and crimes in order to mobilize local, regional and international support to assist victims in the victory of human rights, and to contribute effectively to the development of Yemeni society and raise His skills are in various fields Republic of Yemen - Aden www.mayyun.org [email protected] twitter.com/Mayyun_Ar facebook.com/-mayyun_AR 3A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not GunsChildren, Not Guns Contents: Importance of the Report ......... 05 The Houthis on the shame list ......... 06 First: Houthi ways and means for recruiting ......... 07 children ......... 12 Schools ..........13 Mosques ..........14 Neighborhoods ..........15 Tribal Sheikhs ..........16 Summer Centers ..........17 Aids ..........18 Abducting ..........19 Second: Houthi Leaders involved in child ......... 20 recruitment ..........21 Third: Numbers and Data ..........25 Geographical Distribution of Victims ..........26 Children›s Age Groups ......... 27 Name lists ......... 28 Child victims of the war media ......... 44 Fourth: Tasks assigned to child soldiers ......... 45 Testimony ......... 46 Fifth: Effects and risks of child recruitment ......... 45 Sixth: Legal Responsibility ......... 50 Recommendations ..........52 4A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns Summary: Recruiting children considered a grave violation of international humanitarian law and as one of the most abominable crimes of our day that blows up the future of a society, since they are the most vulnerable group to dangers in conflicts, such as murder, torture, physical and sexual violence. Not to mention the crime of exploiting them, pushing them into wars. The world has criminalized the recruitment of children and has Established international and local charters, treaties and laws to protect children’s rights. However, (MHRD) highlights in this report the crime of recruitment of children by the Iran-backed Houthis, the ways and means of recruitment such as media and cultural mobilization that are widely and systematically practiced in schools, institutes, mosques and religious centers, as well as in towns and popular neighborhoods by what so called Tribal Sheikhs and supervisors affiliated with the Houthis. In addition to the Houthis exploitation of the living conditions the citizens suffered due to the conflict that has been going on in Yemen for years, they (Houthis) also exploited the summer centers in this process by employing humanitarian aid for the recruitment. The report touches upon children abducting, carrot and stick methods practiced by the Houthis in their areas of control. It also touches upon the negative effects, repercussions and risks to which child soldiers are exposed, in addition to clarifying the legal and human rights vision for this human crime, which is part of the Houthis behavior in destroying Yemen and its people. Data and information related to this human crime, are also included in the report, in addition to details, forms and testimonies of the victims› relatives regarding the recruitment of children by the Houthis, which threatens the future of an entire generation, might have negative interim and strategic repercussions. Names of the child recruitment network of Houthi leaders are also listed in the report, in addition to a number of statistics and analytical data for this crime, including: The numbers and geographical distribution of child victims, their age groups, lists of names, and the tasks assigned to these child soldiers during combat operations. The war is about to take out an entire generation in Yemen, since the global conscience does not act to stop the crime of child recruitment and end the war in the country, as 5A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns long as the Houthi group is working at a high pace to support its fighting capabilities by opening dozens of child recruitment camps. Despite the varying estimates of the number of children who were recruited in national and international reports, the numbers remain estimates that do not reflect the true scale of the disaster that Yemeni children are exposed to. The UN 2017 report, estimated the number of children recruited by the Houthi group at about 1,500, while a report by the Associated Press stated that the Houthi group had recruited about 18,000 children by the end of 2018. As for the report issued by the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory and SAM in February 2021, it was stated that the Houthi group had recruited (10,333) Yemeni children since 2014. In September 2019, the Ministry of Human Rights in the Yemeni government published estimates indicating that the Houthi group had recruited more than 30,000 children since 2014. While MHRD documented ((by name and video)) the killing of 640 Yemeni children during the first six months of 2021, who were forced by the Houthi group to fight in its battles, and who were buried in funeral processions announced and broadcast through the official media of the Houthi group. The number of children killed in the battles of the group, who were not buried in official ceremonies and whose names were not published in the media, is estimated to be double the officially announced number. As for the wounded and injured of the child soldiers, their number exceeds (3,400), according to what was verified by the MHRD team from the records of the hospitalization departments in the capital Sana’a, Al Mahwit, Dhamar, Hodeidah, Hajjah, Ibb and Taiz, and from the statements of the group’s Wounded Care Institution. Statistics show that the total number of children who were killed in the battles of the Houthis are from (15) Yemeni governorates, in which children are still - in most - subjected to grave and continuous violations. The child victims are divided into three age groups as follows: The first age group: from (1012-) years old. The second: from (1314-). The third: from (1517-). Through an analysis of information and statistics on the number of children killed, we reached important results that enabled us to identify the governorates of Yemen in which children are subjected to grave violations from the reality of the number of 6A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns children killed, which are in order as follows: Sana›a: It ranks first in the number of child soldiers victims, with a rate of (22.2%). Dhamar: It ranks second in the number of child soldiers victims, with a rate of (16.6%). Hajjah: It comes in third place in the number of child soldiers victims, at a rate of (13.3%). The Capital comes fourth in the number of child soldiers victims, with a rate of (10.3%). Ibb: It ranks fifth in the number of child soldiers victims, with a rate of (7.5%). Saada: It ranks sixth in the number of child soldiers, with a rate of (7.3%). MHRD›s team worked double in preparing this report, based on monitoring and documenting of field data and information, and analysis of videos and photos of the victims. It also worked on the daily monitoring and documenting of the media affiliated with the Houthi group, and the officially announced funerals and burials for the dead children, in addition to field work carried out by the team during the period from January 1, 2021 to June 1, 2021, including: Hearing a number of testimonies and interviews with a number of victims’ relatives, and those interested and concerned with defending children’s rights. In conclusion, the report includes a number of recommendations for combating the crime of child recruitment and the role of the international community. The Houthis on the shame list for violating children’s rights:- In 2012, Houthi leader AbdulMalik Al-Houthi met with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict - the United Nations, Leila Zerrougui, and (he) pledged to work and promised to end the recruitment and the use of child soldiers, but the large number of victims of child soldiers recruited by the Houthis since 2014 until now, proved that his promises were definitely blatant lies. It was confirmed by United Nations on June 18, 2021 that the Houthi group is violating the rights of children in Yemen. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, included the Houthi group on the blacklist of violating children’s rights. The UN report confirmed that the Houthis kill and maim more than (250) children during 2020. 7A Issued By/ Moyyun Organization for Human Rights and Development (MHRD) Children, Not Guns In a detailed report by the Yemeni researcher Abdu Ali Al-Hothifi, who specializes in documenting violations of Houthi recruitment of children, he documented (depending on Houthi media sources) the killing of (1410) children in 2020, provided with names, date and place of death and age, . Last February (2020), the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms, documented 65,971 violations against Yemeni children during the past four years. Yet as shocking as these statistics are in these reports and other international reports, the violations against childhood have not been fully documented, as the Houthis have been recruiting children and pushing them into wars for many years, even since their six wars against the Yemeni State that erupted in June 2004.