Amnesty urges probe into US air strike on migrant detention centre in Yemen that left dozens dead

Amnesty International (AI) on Monday urged a probe into a US air strike on a migrant detention centre in Saada, north-western Yemen, on 28 April that killed and injured dozens of migrants.

The air strike was one of many undertaken by the US since March that led to hundreds of people being killed and injured in what human rights groups are calling a violation of international humanitarian law.

“The US attacked a well-known detention facility where the Houthis have been detaining migrants who had no means to take shelter. The major loss of civilian life in this attack raises serious concerns about whether the US complied with its obligations under international humanitarian law, including the rules on distinction and precautions,” said Agnès Callamard, AI’s secretary general.

AI spoke with two individuals who work with African migrant and refugee communities in Yemen, and who had visited two nearby hospitals and their morgues in the aftermath of the air strike, confirmed witnessing evidence of a high number of casualties.  

The organisation also analysed satellite imagery and video footage of horrific scenes showing migrants’ bodies strewn across rubble and rescuers trying to pull badly wounded survivors from the debris.