Saudi prince accuses Tehran of war crimes
Allied Houthi missile intercepted
SAUDI Arabia’s crown prince said Iran’s supply of rockets to militias in Yemen is an act of “direct military aggression” that could be an act of war, state media reported yesterday, remarks reflecting sharply heightened strains between Riyadh and Tehran.
Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s comments were published after Saudi air defence forces intercepted a ballistic missile they said was fired towards Riyadh on Saturday by the Iran-allied Houthi militia, which controls large parts of neighbouring Yemen.
Saudi-led forces, which back the internationally-recognised government, have been targeting the Houthis in a war which has killed more than 10 000 people and triggered a humanitarian disaster in one of the region’s poorest countries.
The supply of rockets to the Iran-allied rebel Houthi movement could “constitute an act of war against the kingdom,” the prince was quoted as saying yesterday in a call with British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson.
Iran has denied it was behind the missile launch, rejecting the Saudi and US statements condemning Tehran as “destructive, provocative and slanderous”.
In reaction to the missile, the Saudi-led military coalition said on Monday it would close all air, land and sea ports to the Arabian Peninsula country.
Human Rights Watch said the missile launch was “most likely a war crime”, but urged Saudi Arabia against restricting aid access to Yemen, where the UN estimates some 7 million people are on the brink of famine and nearly 900 000 infected with cholera.
“This unlawful attack is no justification for Saudi Arabia to exacerbate Yemen’s humanitarian catastrophe by further restricting aid and access to the country,” it said.
The coalition said aid workers and humanitarian supplies would continue to be able to access and exit Yemen, despite the temporary closure of ports, but the UN said it was not given approval for two scheduled humanitarian flights on Monday.
The UN and international aid organisations have repeatedly criticised the coalition for blocking aid access, especially to northern Yemen, which is held by the Houthis.
In an interview with CNN on Monday, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir accused the armed Lebanese Hezbollah group of firing the missile at Riyadh from Houthiheld territory.
“With regard to the missile… it was launched on Saudi territory, it was an Iranian missile launched by Hezbollah from territory occupied by the Houthis in Yemen.”
He said the missile was similar to the one launched in July at Yanbu in Saudi Arabia and was manufactured in Iran, disassembled and smuggled into Yemen, then reassembled by the operatives of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah, “then it was launched into Saudi Arabia”.
The Saudi-led coalition has been targeting the Houthis since they seized parts of Yemen in 2015, including the capital Sana’a, forcing President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee and seek help from neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
Iran yesterday rejected accusations that it was responsible for “military aggression” in Saudi Arabia, after a missile was launched into the kingdom from neighbouring Yemen.
“These insinuations are false, destructive, irresponsible and, above all, provocative,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Bahram Ghassemi, according to Iranian media.
Instead of further aggravating the situation with such “absurd allegations”, the Saudis should help through diplomatic channels to end violence in Yemen, Ghassemi said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said: “The Saudis are acting like hooligans in the region. They are making the region unsafe and then end up trying to blame Iran for their dangerous policy.”
Tehran’s Defence Ministry and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard also denied any involvement in the missile attack. – Reuters-AP