US To Stop Refueling Saudi Coalition Warplanes Bombing Yemen
The US military will no more fuel aircraft of the Saudi-led coalition bombing Yemen, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said in a statement on November 10.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the member countries of the Coalition to Support legitimacy in Yemen, continually pursue improvements to military professionalism and self-sufficiency. Recently the Kingdom and the Coalition has increased its capability to independently conduct inflight refueling in Yemen. As a result, in consultation with the United States, the Coalition has requested cessation of inflight refueling support for it’s operations in Yemen.
The Coalition Command expresses its hope that the upcoming UN sponsored negotiations in a third country, will lead to a negotiated settlement in accordance to UNSCR 2216 and see an end to the aggression by the Iranian backed Houthi militias’ against the Yemeni people and countries in the region, including the threat of ballistic missiles and UAVs.”
The SPA claimed that this was “requested” by the Saudi-led coalition itself. However, on November 9, Reuters reported citing unnamed US officials, that the US is considering to end the refueling of coalition aircraft in Yemen because oof both the coalition’s own increased capabilities and growing international outrage over the human consequences of the war in Yemen.
Actions of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen is the main reason of the current acute humanitarian crisis in the country. Coalition warplanes have repeatedly bombed civilian infrastructure other targets, including wedding parties and school buses, sparking some criticism in mainstream media. The level of civilian casualties as a result of the coalition’s actions has not allowed maisntream media outlets to fully ingore this situation. However, the US has made repeated attempts to put blame on Iran for the current situation. The US and UK have both been criticized for selling arms to the coalition despite their targeting of civilians and carrying out war crimes.
https://southfront.org/us-to-stop-refueling-saudi-coalition-warplanes-bombing-yemen/