Hundreds of migrants crossing border killed by Saudi Arabia, claims report

A new report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused the Saudi border guards of undertaking mass killings of migrants along the Yemeni border. The report claims that hundreds of migrants, the majority of them being Ethiopians, were gunned down while attempting to cross war-torn Yemen to reach Saudi Arabia.

The 73-page report titled "They Fired On Us Like Rain" contains the testimony of the migrants who say they were shot at using guns and targeted using explosive weapons as well. TheSaudi border guards did not even spare women and children and often took sadistic pleasurein asking migrants, what limb they wanted to get shot at, the report claims.

To publish the report, HRW interviewed as many as 42 migrants, including 38 Ethiopians who attempted to cross the Yemen-Saudi border betweenMarch 2022 and June 2023. The organisation also analysed over 350 videos and photographs posted on social media and other sources.

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“I saw people killed in a way I have never imagined,” Hamdiya.I saw 30 killed people on the spot,"Hamdiya, a 14-year-old girl who crossed the border, told the researchers.

Notably, the deadly attacks on Ethiopians continue despite over750,000 of them living and working in Saudi Arabia. While a significant portion of Ethiopians migrate foreconomic reasons, a number of them have fled because of serious human rights abuses in the country, including during the recent, brutal armed conflict in the north.

Never seen such violence: Researchers

The researchers at the institute said it is impossible to know the precise number of migrants killed but gave a ballpark figure of over 650.

“Spending billions buying up professional golf, football clubs, and major entertainment events to improve the Saudi image should not deflect attention from these horrendous crimes,"said Nadia Hardman, refugee and migrant rights researcher at the institute.

“I cover violence at borders, but I have never come across something of this nature, the use of explosive weapons including against women and children,” she added.

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Report matches the UN version

The report corroborates the letter written by theUN Special Rapporteurs to the Saudi government last year. The letter alleged the killing of hundreds of migrants during a period of four months in 2022.

"We have received concerning allegations of cross-border artillery shelling and small arms fire allegedly by Saudi security forces causing the deaths of up to 430 and injuring 650 migrants, including refugees and asylum seekers, in Sa'dah governorate, Yemen, and Jizan province, Saudi Arabia, between 1 January and 30 April 2022," read the letter.

At the time, the Saudi government said it took the allegations seriously but strongly rejected them.

"Based on the limited information provided, authorities within the Kingdom have discovered no information or evidence to confirm or substantiate the allegations," the kingdom said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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