UN "Human Rights" Council Refuses Independent Inquiry on Bombings in Yemen

"Good news for the Saudis and not-so-good news for the civilians of Yemen: The United Nations Human Rights Council voted Thursday to establish a national inquiry into human rights abuses in Yemen with the help of a U.N. technical assistance team.

The decision is a major blow to the attempt, led by the Netherlands, at a resolution that would instead require an international inquiry into the atrocities unfolding in Yemen. This is the second year in a row that the council managed to agree only on a national inquiry, which tends to be one-sided and ignorant of the degree to which people are suffering.

The Netherlands withdrew its text on Yemen during the deliberations on Thursday and instead compromised on the draft resolution, which called for the national inquiry and was put forward by the council's group of Arab states.

This decision comes as a relief to Saudi Arabia and the Arab states, which want to avoid international meddling into a conflict that they have a major stake in.

A Saudi-led coalition has been targeting Houthis in Yemen since March of 2015 after it helped run the country's president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, into exile. It has mercilessly bombed civilian-heavy areas in the country, most recently targeting medical facilities and schools..."