In light of the arrival of the Saudi Arabia state-owned “Bahri Abha” at the port of Sagunto, Valencia, Spain, Amnesty International protested, calling the government to prevent the vessel’s entry into the Spanish port.
Specifically, the organizations, including Amnesty International, FundiPau, Greenpeace and Oxfam Intermón, make up the Spanish Control arms campaign.
The organisations demanded that the Spanish Government prohibit the entrance of the vessel and loading in Spain of weapons, which are most probably to be used for war crimes.
The Bahri Abha visited many ports on the east cost of the US, prior its announcement on changing its route to Sagunto on November 26. For the time being, it is unknown whether the vessel carries arms, but the Amnesty says that it is possible given its recent history.
The NGOs protesting against it believe that the vessel may load new weapons in Spain. In addition, Amnesty International Spain was informed from the Spanish Government that the ship will load containers that will be sent to Abu Dhabi and Alexandria. However, the Government hasn’t inform the public on the content of the containers or the cargo being carried from the USA.
Based on Amnesty International’s analysis of bills of ladings, since the 2015 Yemen war began, the Bahri Abha has transferred some $162 million worth of arms on eight voyages from the U.S. to Saudi Arabia. About a quarter of this has taken place in 2019 and the majority has been military aircraft components.
Since Yemen’s current war began in 2015 this same ship has carried weapons, mostly military aircraft components, worth 143 million euros on eight voyages from the United States to Saudi Arabia. The Spanish government must intervene to ensure this Saudi Arabian ship is not transporting more deadly cargo that could be used to commit further atrocities in Yemen.
… said Alberto Estévez, spokesperson for the Spanish Control Arms campaign.
One person out of three in Yemen – mostly women and children – is on the brink of famine. More than 16 million people do not have access to drinking water, and 15 million do not have access to minimum health services since hospitals are closing due to lack of resources.
Responding to public pressure, several countries, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece and Germany, have suspended all or part of their arms sales to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other coalition members. Following the murder of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi, several more European states announced the suspension of arms transfers to Saudi Arabia, including Norway, Finland and Denmark.
