A rights group filed a lawsuit against Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan during his visit to France on Wednesday, accusing him of war crimes, complicity in torture and inhumane treatment in Yemen, a lawyer for the group said.
The complaint by the International Alliance for the Defence of Rights and Freedoms (AIDL) said Prince Mohammed, who is Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, is responsible for attacks that hit civilians.
“It’s in this capacity that he has ordered bombings on Yemeni territory,” said complaint filed on behalf of the AIDL, which is based in France.
There was no immediate response from the Crown Prince’s court or the UAE government media office to an emailed request for comment.
Diplomatic efforts to halt the war in Yemen have proved unsuccessful and attempts by rights group’s to hold the war’s protagonists to account have gained little international traction so far.
The complaint, filed in a Paris court, comes as pressure grows on French President Emmanuel Macron to curb arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which head a coalition fighting the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels who control most of northern Yemen and the capital Sanaa.