Direct proof of use
Cluster munitions were documented in the 2014 Yemen Civil War after the Saudi-led coalition began military operations against Houthi forces in March 2015. Human Rights Watch reported that field research by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the United Nations, together with witness interviews, photographs, and video evidence, confirmed Saudi-led coalition cluster munition use in Yemen.
The documented weapons included air-dropped CBU-105 Sensor Fuzed Weapons, CBU-87 bombs, and CBU-58 bombs, as well as ground-launched M26 and ASTROS II rockets. The Monitor's Yemen profile records at least 23 Saudi-led coalition cluster munition attacks from 2015 to 2017 using seven types of air-delivered and ground-launched cluster munitions.
Sources: HRW Yemen cluster munitions report, HRW Yemen technical briefing, Monitor Yemen cluster munition profile
Timeline
The first HRW-documented 2015 incidents included CBU-105 Sensor Fuzed Weapon remnants in Saada governorate in April and CBU-87/BLU-97 evidence in Saada in May. HRW later mapped additional 2015 cases in Hajja, Amran, Hodeida, and Sanaa, including M26 rocket attacks and a January 2016 CBU-58 attack in the capital.
Amnesty International separately investigated an Ahma, Saada attack on 27 October 2015 and found witness and remnant evidence consistent with cluster munitions fired by surface-to-surface rockets. The Monitor's country profile extends the documented Saudi-led coalition cluster munition attack list through February 2017.
Sources: HRW Yemen cluster munitions harm civilians, HRW Yemen technical briefing, Amnesty Ahma cluster munition investigation, Monitor Yemen cluster munition profile
Narrative
Most source-attributed responsibility in the record points to the Saudi-led coalition. HRW attributed air-dropped CBU-105 and CBU-87 use to coalition aircraft, and said the coalition was responsible for all or nearly all of the documented attacks because it was the only actor operating aircraft or multibarrel rocket launchers capable of delivering five of the six munition types then identified in the conflict.
The weapon role was both strike and area denial. The attacks used cluster munitions against areas associated with Houthi forces or territory, while unexploded submunitions created continuing hazards after the initial strike. HRW and Amnesty documented civilian injuries, including injuries from unexploded submunitions, and the Monitor records no compelling evidence of Saudi-led coalition cluster munition use in Yemen after the 2015-2017 period.
Sources: HRW Yemen cluster munitions report, HRW Yemen cluster munitions harm civilians, Amnesty Ahma cluster munition investigation, Monitor Yemen cluster munition profile
