Iran Says Saudis Must Stop “Criminal Acts” in Yemen

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei made a public statement on April 9 denouncing the Saudi airstrikes in Yemen as “a crime” and “a genocide.”

 

“What the Saudi government is doing in Yemen resembles exactly what the Zionist regime did in Gaza,” Khamenei was quoted as saying by i24news in Tel Aviv, Israel. “This is a massacre, a genocide, and internationally prosecutable,” said the Iranian, denouncing the “massacre of children and the destruction of homes, infrastructure and wealth” of Yemen. “Certainly, the Saudis will suffer damage,” Khamenei warned, without specifying what that damage might be.

 

The bombing campaign condemned by Khamenei started on March 25 and is being waged by a regional coalition led by Saudi Arabia against the Houthi rebels that are backed by Iran. War planes from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, the United Arab Emiriates, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain have also taken part in the operation. President Obama has formed a Joint Planning Cell to interact with Saudi Arabia and coordinate “logistical and intelligence support” for what the Saudis have named “Operation Decisive Storm.”

 

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