Israel’s airstrikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah port last month appeared to be an indiscriminate or disproportionate attack on civilians which may amount to a war crime, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday.
Israel said on July 20 its warplanes struck Houthi military targets near Hodeidah.
The attack targeted oil facilities and a power station and HRW said it killed at least six people and wounded at least 80.
It took place a day after a Houthi drone hit Israel’s economic hub Tel Aviv, killing one person, which HRW said also may constitute a war crime.
The retaliatory Israeli airstrikes on Hodeidah hit more than two dozen oil storage tanks and two shipping cranes in the port, as well as a power plant in the province’s Salif district, Human Rights Watch said.
“The attacks appeared to cause disproportionate harm to civilians and civilian objects. Serious violations of the laws of war committed willfully, that is deliberately or recklessly, are war crimes.”
Conflict Continues
Analyzed satellite imagery found that the oil tanks burned for at least three days, posing environmental concerns, according to the HRW report.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli foreign ministry.
Hodeidah, which has been under Houthi control since 2021, is critical for delivering food and other necessities to the Yemeni population, who depend on imports. About 70 percent of Yemen’s commercial imports and 80 percent of its humanitarian assistance passes through the port.
In response to Israel’s assault on Gaza, the Houthis have launched missiles and drones at
Israel and disrupted global trade through the Red Sea, further destabilising the Middle East as war in the Palestinian enclave rages on after 10 months.
Israel reports that since the Gaza conflict began, the Houthis have carried out 200 attacks against it, most of which were intercepted and did not result in casualties. However, a rare Houthi drone strike on July 19 that struck Tel Aviv led Israel to carry out its first retaliatory strikes against the group the following day.
The Houthi movement, known formally as Ansar Allah, said it would continue to attack Israel in response.
(With inputs from Reuters)
