A/HRC/36/33 E. Sexual and gender-based violence 75. The ongoing conflict exacerbated the entrenched inequalities faced by women and girls in Yemen, leading to increased vulnerability. The breakdown of formal and informal protection mechanisms, together with large-scale displacement, gave rise to negative coping strategies, particularly child marriage. More than two thirds of Yemeni females marry before the age of 18, compared to half before the conflict. 50 76. Sexual and gender-based violence was underreported owing to the stigma and risks associated with reporting. While no statistics were available, some information received by OHCHR indicated that migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons and detainees were all at increased risk of such violence. F. Violations of economic and social rights 77. The ongoing armed conflict negatively impacted a range of economic and social rights, including the right to food, housing, education, health, and water and sanitation. The imposition by the parties to the conflict of sieges, blockades and restrictions on movement had a severe impact on the availability of goods and services and their accessibility by the civilian population. Public and private infrastructure collapsed and access to basic services remained low or non-existent. Factories and farms were damaged and food imports restricted. The non-payment of public sector salaries for most of the past year and the economic uncertainty caused by the relocation by the Government of the central bank to Aden further exacerbated the situation. Teachers, doctors and sanitation workers — and therefore schools, hospitals and city streets — were all affected. Less than half of the health facilities were functional. Many people could not purchase medicine or food, even where they were available. Those circumstances accelerated the spread of cholera and other diseases and increased the risk of famine. The population in Yemen was increasingly impoverished, hungry, displaced, sick, injured and/or dying, and people faced a desperate situation. VII. Accountability 78. Impunity is both a cause and consequence of the current conflict in Yemen. The 2011 crisis and the eventual failure of the National Dialogue Conference were in part due to the unwillingness of the parties in Yemen and the international community to pursue accountability for past crimes and human rights violations and abuses. 79. International human rights law and international humanitarian law include obligations to investigate violations to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice and to provide victims with full and effective reparation. Despite the ongoing armed conflict, there have been some developments in that regard. 80. In August 2016, the coalition forces announced the establishment of JIAT, an investigative mechanism comprised of 14 individuals with military and legal experience from the member States.51 As of June 2017, JIAT had released the findings on compliance by the coalition with international humanitarian law in 21 airstrikes since March 2015. In all but one of those cases, it found that the coalition was pursuing a legitimate military objective. Without necessarily acknowledging wrongdoing, JIAT suggested that the coalition should pay compensation or offer assistance to the victims in five incidents and take action against those responsible in two incidents. OHCHR requested more clarity and transparency on JIAT, including during a meeting between the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights and representatives of Saudi Arabia held in Geneva on 3 May 2017. Based on a review of the limited available findings by JIAT, OHCHR was concerned that 50 51 See www.unicef.org/videoaudio/PDFs/Yemen_2_Years_-_children_falling_through_the_ cracks_FINAL.pdf. See www.spa.gov.sa/viewstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1524799. 15