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May 10, 2019

French Activists Contest Saudi Arms Shipment, Citing Civilian Deaths in Yemen
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In northern France, human rights activists are attempting to block
authorities from loading French weapons onto a Saudi vessel, saying the
shipment would be used to kill civilians in Yemen in violation of an
international arms treaty. About 100 protesters turned out Thursday at
the port of Le Havre ahead of the arrival of the Saudi ship, as lawyers
for two separate human rights groups sued to prevent the shipment. The
protest came after a French news site reported that French-made tanks
and laser-guided missile systems were being used by the Saudi-led
coalition against civilians in Yemen's war. This is Jean-Paul Lecoq, a
member of the French National Assembly who joined Thursday's protest.

Jean-Paul Lecoq: "The war in Yemen is a difficult war. We are turned
into supporters of Saudi Arabia and if we, the French citizens, do not
act, if we don't try to stop arms sales, we will end up as accessories
to this business. We don't want this. We don't want to be in this
situation. The French president shouldn't be allowed to decide on his
own if France can sell or not weapons. This decision should belong to
Europeans democracies and Parliament."



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