HRC: Continued closure of Sana’a airport continuing humanitarian crime, internationally prohibited collective punishment

The National Human Rights Commission on Sunday affirmed that the continued closure of Sana’a International Airport and the restrictions imposed on its operation constitute a continuing humanitarian crime and systematic collective punishment against civilians in Yemen.

In a statement  the Commission considered the continued closure of Sana’a Airport a grave and blatant violation of the rules of international humanitarian law and international human rights conventions.

The statement explained that depriving more than 30 million Yemenis of their right to travel, medical treatment, and movement through a civilian airport constitutes an unlawful use of civilian infrastructure as a tool of political pressure. This amounts to a serious violation that is not subject to any statute of limitations and warrants international legal accountability.

The statement indicated that the ongoing closure, now in its 11th year, has resulted in a complex humanitarian catastrophe, including denying patients access to treatment abroad, restricting the movement of students and workers, and preventing family reunification. This constitutes a direct violation of fundamental rights guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The Human Rights Commission affirmed that the politicization of airports and air crossings constitutes a dangerous precedent in violating the principle of the neutrality of civilian objects, and places the responsible parties under direct legal and moral responsibility for the ongoing humanitarian deterioration in Yemen.

It considered the continuation of the situation without urgent international intervention to reflect a serious inaction by the international community towards the suffering of a people subjected to blatant collective punishment, which necessitates immediate action from the United Nations and the Human Rights and Security Councils.

The Commission called for the full reopening of Sana’a International Airport without any political or military conditions. Considering this an urgent legal and humanitarian obligation that cannot be postponed or compromised, indicating that the continued disruption of the airport will remain an open violation file before international forums, and the rights of civilians to movement and treatment will remain inherent and inalienable rights that cannot be disposed of or disrupted under any pretex