Saudi Arabia and toxic waste in Yemen

Yemen's National Salvation Government has condemned Saudi Arabia's attempts to dump untreated hazardous waste on land off Yemen, warning that Riyadh is trying to turn Yemen into a toxic waste dump.

Yemen's Fisheries Ministry has denounced environmental pollution, injuries and health risks that could result from any deal between the Saudi Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Commission and the so-called Yemeni Presidential Council, led by Rashad al-Alimi, on radiation nuclear power resulting from toxic waste. He highlighted that the issue "bombs a major environmental disaster due to the impact of Saudi waste that has been and will be buried in desert regions and other areas" in Yemen.

The ministry also highlighted "the continued dumping of toxic and chemical waste by foreign vessels off the coast of Yemen," noting that "radiation recently detected in the waters of the Red and Arabian Seas has caused the deaths of a number high levels of fish and the destruction of coral reefs and the marine environment in the provinces of Aden, Abyan, al-Mahra, Hadhramaut.

“The Saudi regime has turned Yemen, since the beginning of its aggression in March 2015, into a testing ground for all internationally prohibited weapons, including cluster bombs, incendiary munitions and nuclear munitions. Saudi Arabia and its allies have been using such munitions in Yemen with the support of the United States, Israel and some Western governments.”

The statement stressed that attempts to turn Yemen into a dumping ground for toxic waste constitute a "crime against humanity", calling on the international community to take immediate action to stop them.