We will prosecute bin Salman, bin Zayed before ICC : Nobel Peace laureate Tawakkol Karman
Yemen, Sept 04: Yemen’s Nobel Peace laureate and activist Tawakkol Karman has said that the latest UN panel report on war crimes in Yemen constitutes a legal basis to prosecute Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed before the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Last week a UN mandated expert panel issued a report which said that members of the Yemeni government, Arab coalition forces particularly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and Houthi militants have “committed acts amounting to war crimes” in Yemen.
On Saturday the Saudi-led Arab coalition accepted responsibility for last month’s deadly air strike on a school bus that killed 40 children in the governorate of Saada, north of Sanaa.
Speaking to Al Jazeera Karman said the report has revealed a series of “horrific and unprecedented violations,” adding that the report “reflects only a small fraction of what the Houthis or the Arab coalition have done in Yemen”.
“Although the report is too small compared reality, it contained different types of crimes and named senior perpetrators,” she said.
Karman has denounced the continued sale of arms to Saudi Arabia and the UAE despite reports which revealed that these weapons are used to kill Yemenis, stressing that those who sell arms to these countries contribute directly and indirectly to the killing of the Yemeni people.
“The Yemeni people reject the coup led by Houthis and Ali Abdullah Saleh in Yemen and also reject the treacherous coalition that came to occupy Yemen and steal its wealth led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE which did not come to the country to support legitimacy” Karman said.
Courtesy: www.middleeastmonitor.com
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
