Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am personally extremely concerned about the current situation in Yemen. Three years of war have had devastating consequences for civilians, with allegations of violations of international humanitarian law, and significant loss of life. The death of former President Saleh has led to increased violence this month. The closure of land, air and sea ports in November, including for the transit of humanitarian aid, was an alarming development, which we responded to at the time. The humanitarian situation is reaching crisis point.

Ireland has provided over €11 million in humanitarian assistance to Yemen since 2015, and we are committed to maintaining support. My predecessor, Deputy Flanagan, raised concerns about the conduct of the war in Yemen and the disastrous humanitarian effects with ministerial counterparts in Saudi Arabia and the UAE on a number of occasions. More recently, officials from my Department met with the Saudi Embassy in Dublin last month and passed on my strong concerns in relation to humanitarian access. In recent days, the embassy of Ireland in Saudi Arabia has conveyed to the Government of Yemen that the reopening of Yemeni ports, for both humanitarian and commercial traffic, is essential to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. There have also been EU contacts with Saudi Arabia on this issue.

At the Foreign Affairs Council this week, I urged stronger EU action on humanitarian access in Yemen. In my interventions, I highlighted the need for more robust political engagement for a sustainable solution. My officials and I will continue to raise my concerns on the humanitarian access issues with the Saudi authorities, as well as with other parties, and at EU and international levels. In September, we worked with other EU countries to get a resolution passed at the Human Rights Council in Geneva to set up an independent panel of international experts to investigate potential violations of humanitarian law in Yemen in the conduct of the conflict there.

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