Yemen, 1st April 2018: As per the allegations on social media and our own follow up and call to a verified source from the residents in the area, we, the Women Solidarity Network, strongly condemn the rape crime and physical abuse committed against a women from Alkhoukha District, in Hodaida, by a Sudanese armed person.

The Women Solidarity Network consider this a grave crime, which can be amount to a war crime as per the Rome Statute and is punishable by the national law. Consequently, we urgently demand the following:-

- We call on the National Committee for investigating Alleged Human Rights Violations, and the International Eminent Expert Group tasked with investigating alleged human rights violations and abuses, to investigate this crime and document it.

-We also demand that the government and the coalition forces take the needed strict actions towards the perpetrator and hold him legally accountable and ensure that he does not escape punishment, and take a range of deterrent measures towards such crimes. We call on them to also investigate the backgrounds of armed personnel that the coalition has brought to Yemen, including possibly members affiliated to Janjaweed militias accused of committing human rights crimes in Sudan’s Darfour region.

-We also urge them to compensate the survivor and provide psychosocial support for her and for her family. We also call on the Attorney

-General to assign the General Prosecutor of Hodieda to investigate the matter, preserve the evidence, and protect the victim and her family

.-We warn against concealing evidence and obstruction of justice on this crime that affect all Yemenis.