Childhood Holocaust on border: Al-Jazeera publishes investigative documentary showing Saudi recruitment of Yemeni child soldiers
SANAA, April 2 (YPA) – Al-Jazeera news channel on Monday published an investigative survey about Saudi Arabia’s recruitment of Yemeni children from several provinces and pushed them to the southern border with Yemen to fight against the Yemeni army and People’s committees, which they call “the Houthis” instead of their soldiers.
In 11-minute investigation documentary included tragic stories of children who were pushed by hard life in their villages and cities after the crisis caused by the Saudi-led coalition war on Yemen to seek suitable jobs that would enable them to support their families and save them from hunger, so they fall into the hands of “soldier brokers” who lead them to what the reporter called “childhood Incinerators”.
The report confirms that trafficker, who arrange with a bus transporting children to areas of clashes at the border after collecting the identity papers, receive for each child 500 Saudi riyals (about 133 dollars).
The second party receives 1,000 Saudi riyals (about 266 dollars) and hands them over to a third smuggler, with the holding of the group’s identity papers, which in turn receives for each person 1500 Saudi riyals ($ 400), and then put them into battle.
According to Tawfiq al-Humaidi of the Sam Human Rights Organization, the investigation indicates that “there is no accurate statistics of the numbers of civilians and children in these battles because of the inability of international organizations to reach these fronts, but they are in thousands.”
The report revealed that the smugglers take Yemeni children to the border area of Najran to protect the Kingdom’s borders for a handful of money ranging from 1500 to 3,000 Saudi riyals.
The report recounts the death journey of children as young as 16, who start from the city of Taiz and take days through the buses, heading to Al-Wade’a crossing point with Saudi Arabia.
Al Jazeera’s investigation was based on exclusive videos proving the presence of children in those places, specifically the two border Fronts of Al-Boqa’ and Kitaf.
According to the investigation, Saudi Arabia has resorted to attracting children and mercenaries to defend its borders instead of its soldiers because of the exorbitant compensation paid by the Saudi Ministry of Defence to the families of Saudi soldiers compared to the soldiers who are polarized from outside the kingdom.
“Saudi Arabia has not been able to protect its borders from the attacks of the Houthis (the Army and Committees that have been defending Yemen for more than four years),” Al Jazeera said. “They have recruited civilians and children in twisted ways from inside and outside Yemen.
They grant urgent assistance to their families for a hundred thousand riyals, and their family is compensated for 1 million Saudi riyals, in addition to other obligations under the Saudi government, for only 15,000 Saudi riyals for a mercenary.
Saudi Arabia has recently been accused of recruiting children from Darfur, exploiting the needs of the poor in its war against Yemen, and documenting its recruitment of Yemeni children by Saudi Arabia in subtle ways to defend it, despite its ratification of the Protocol on the non-involvement of children in war in 2011.