Rights group in France sues Abu Dhabi crown prince

By Yusuf Ozcan

PARIS

A Paris-based human rights group on Wednesday announced it has filed a criminal complaint against the crown prince of Abu Dhabi for his role in the devastating war in Yemen.

Joseph Breham, a lawyer of the International Alliance for Defence of Rights and Freedoms (AIDL), told reporters that the group was suing Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for the UAE’s actions in the war in Yemen as well as “complicity in inhumane treatment and bloodshed.”

The move came on a day when the crown prince, who is also second-in-command of the UAE Armed Forces, travelled to Paris for a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Noting that Yemenis were among the plaintiffs against bin Zayed, Breham said the crown prince has been held responsible in the complaint for the ongoing conflict.

Impoverished Yemen has remained wracked by violence since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including capital Sanaa.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Sunni-Arab allies launched a devastating air campaign in Yemen aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

Tens of thousands of people -- including numerous Yemeni civilians -- are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which has left much of the country’s basic infrastructure in ruins.