Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conflict in Yemen (S/2013/383)

The present report is the first to deal specifically with the situation of children and armed conflict in Yemen. The report, which covers the period from July 2011 to March 2013, contains detailed information on incidents of all six types of grave violations against children, by both the armed forces and armed groups in Yemen. Such incidents include recruitment and use, killing and maiming, rape and other grave acts of sexual violence, abductions and attacks on schools and hospitals, as well as denial of humanitarian access.

Children in Yemen continue to be victims of grave child rights violations.
Overall, violations such as attacks on schools and hospitals and the killing of children have decreased during the course of the reporting period as a result of reduced numbers of incidents of armed violence and civil unrest and the progress made in the implementation of Yemen’s Transition Agreement, signed in Riyadh on 23 November 2011. However, there has been an increase in the numbers of child casualties related to mines, unexploded ordnance and explosive remnants of war. Incidents of association of children with armed forces and armed groups, as well as attacks on schools, also continue to be reported. During the course of the reporting period, the United Nations and its partners progressively expanded their monitoring and reporting network, which has contributed to an increase in verified reports of the recruitment and use of children by the armed forces and various armed groups, as well as of cases of sexual violence and the killing and maiming of children by mines, unexploded ordnance and explosive remnants of war.

The report highlights the need to implement specific measures to address and prevent grave child rights violations. It outlines the efforts and commitments made by the Government of Yemen and the Al-Houthi armed groups following the visit of my Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, including commitments obtained from the Government of Yemen to develop a concrete and time-bound action plan to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children in the Yemeni Armed Forces, and from Al-Houthi to continue the dialogue with the United Nations on this matter. Specific recommendations are made to strengthen measures to prevent and end grave rights violations against children in Yemen.