A/HRC/25/59
including a pregnant woman who was hit by flying shrapnel, and that a further 20 civilians
were injured.
58.
On 29 August 2012, precision-guided munitions were reportedly targeted at and
killed a group of five men gathered in open space behind a mosque in the village of
Khashamir in Hadramout province. Remotely piloted aircraft under the control of the
United States are alleged to have been involved in the operation. Three of the deceased
were reportedly members of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. The evidence, however,
strongly suggests that the other two men were civilians. One of the men killed in the attack
was Salem Ben Ahmed Ben Salim Ali Jaber, an imam of the al-Mutadharirin mosque and
an outspoken opponent of Al-Qaida in the Arab Peninsula. The other was Walid Abhallah
Abdelhamud Ben Ali Jaber, a relative of the imam and a local traffic policeman. Inquiries
into the affiliations and activities of these two victims strongly suggest that both men were
civilians. In October 2013, Human Rights Watch reported the results of field research into
this incident.26 The Special Rapporteur notes that the targeted individuals who were with
Salem Ben Ahmed Ben Salim Ali Jaber and Walid Abhallah Abdelhamud Ben Ali Jaber
were reportedly engaged in military activities, and he notes the precision nature of the
attack. Nonetheless, he considers that, since two civilians were also killed in the attack, it
merits investigation and satisfies the criteria identified in paragraph 34 above.
59.
On 2 September 2012, precision-guided munitions were fired at a vehicle that was
being used as a civilian shuttle bus in the vicinity of Rad’a in the Walad Rabi’ district of
Al-Bayda province. The attack reportedly occurred whilst the vehicle was stationary at the
intersection of two roads leading to the villages of Sabool and Manasseh. Aircraft under the
control of the United States are alleged to have been involved in the operation. The
evidence is currently equivocal as to whether the air platforms used were manned or
unmanned. Eleven civilians, including three children and a pregnant woman, were reported
to have been killed instantly, and a twelfth is reported to have died as the result of his
injuries shortly after the attack. Inquiries into the affiliations and activities of the victims
suggest that all of those killed were civilians. In October 2013, Human Rights Watch
reported the results of field research into this incident.27
60.
On 12 December 2013, precision-guided munitions were reportedly fired at a
convoy of vehicles making their way to a wedding celebration outside the city of Rad’a in
Al-Bayda province. Remotely piloted aircraft under the control of the United States are
alleged to have been involved in the operation. At least 12, and possibly as many as 15,
individuals were reportedly killed, and at least 10 other individuals sustained non-fatal
injuries, including the bride. Initial reports suggest that the majority of the victims may
have been civilians, although there are indications that members of Al-Qaida in the Arabian
Peninsula may have been the targets and were among the dead. The attacks were
condemned in a joint statement issued on 26 December 2013 by the Special Rapporteur on
extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and the Special Rapporteur on torture and
other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.28 In February 2014, Human
Rights Watch published the results of field research into the attack, which raised serious
questions as to whether the attack conformed to the criteria set down in a speech by the
26
27
28
Human Rights Watch, “Between a Drone and Al-Qaeda”: The Civilian Cost of US Targeted Killings
in Yemen (2013), pp. 61 ff. Available at http://www.hrw.org/reports/2013/10/22/between-drone-andal-qaeda-0.
Ibid., pp. 53 ff.
Press release, “UN experts condemn lethal drone airstrikes in Yemen. Available from
www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=14145&LangID=E.
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