Saudi-led coalition Forces in Yemen Spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki, said that the coalition's Command takes all allegations concerning the participation of under-aged fighters in any of its members States seriously.
He added that the coalition conducts investigations into what could be right in accordance with their legal obligations under international Humanitarian law and related conventions for children.
The coalition also prevents the participation of members under the age of eighteen years old from all Member States, recalling at the same time the all efforts to rehabilitate children recruited by Houthi-backed terrorist militia supported by Iran, which amounted to (120) In a Rehabilitation program for children soldiers and affected by war in Marib city in cooperation with the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
In order to lead the joint forces to protect children in Yemen, a partnership agreement was signed with the United Nations to promote the protection of children in areas of armed conflict in Yemen through the establishment of a child protection unit led by the joint forces of the coalition, while the reports of international organizations and reports of human rights organizations prove the recruitment of the Houthi terrorist militia to more than (23000) Yemeni children considered a war crime by international humanitarian law.
Al-Maliki concluded his statement by confirming the commitment of the Saudi-led coalition Command to the implementation of international humanitarian law and its customary rules regarding the joining of the armed forces of any country within the joint forces of Coalition for the Support of Legitimacy in Yemen.
According to SPA, this happens by implementing a series of accurate procedures and recording vital data of the fighters and continuously reviewing them and ensuring compliance with legal and operational standards as the core of respect for the application of international humanitarian law and its customary rules.
