국제앰네스티는 예멘정부에 알-후타(al-Hutah)지역에서 수행된 알-카에다(al-Qa’ida) 소탕 작전으로 발생한 국내실향민들을 보호할 것을 요구했다.
예멘적신월사(The Yemen Red Cresecent Society)는 12,000명 이상의 거주민들이 샤브와(Shabwa) 남쪽지역 에서부터 예멘정부의 공격을 피해 이주했으며 이들은 아직 인도적인 지원을 받지 못한 상황이라고 밝혔다.
국제앰네스티 필립 루터(Philip Luther) 중동 및 북아프리카국 부국장은 “어떤 형식의 작전이든 예멘정부는 충격적으로 많은 수의 사람들이 실향민이 된 것을 긴급한 과제로 결정하고 이에 대한 지원에 나서야 한다”라고 전했으며 또한, “정부는 이 실향민들의 안전을 보장할 의무가 있으며 이들에게 식량, 물, 거주지를 보장해주어야 한다. 특히, 피난 중에 부상을 입은 사람들을 위해서 의료서비스를 즉각적으로 제공해야 한다”라고 강조했다.
언론보도에 따르면 정부군과 전투원으로 추정되는 이들 수십이 전투 중에 사망하는 한편 최소 1명 이상의 주민이 사망하였으며 다수의 주민들 또한 부상당했다. 
THOUSANDS IN NEED OF PROTECTION AFTER FLEEING YEMENI ASSAULT ON SUSPECTED MILITANTS
22 September 2010Amnesty International has urged the Yemeni authorities to take urgent measures to protect thousands of people displaced during a military operation against suspected al-Qa’ida militants in the town of al-Hutah.
The Yemen Red Crescent Society has said more than 12,000 local residents have fled the assault, in the southern region of Shabwa, but reports indicate they are yet to receive any humanitarian aid.
Government officials state that the operation is against up to 100 al-Qa’ida fighters taking refuge in the town, while several inhabitants of neighbouring areas have told Amnesty International that the suspected militants are actually armed tribesmen with grievances against the government.
“Whatever the nature of the ongoing operations, the Yemeni authorities must ensure as a matter of urgency that what amounts to a shocking number of people displaced in the space of a few days are adequately provided for,” said Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
“The authorities have a duty to ensure public safety and must immediately fulfil the needs of the displaced in terms of food, water, shelter and medical care, particularly for those who may have been injured during their escape.” Media reports suggest that at least one local resident has been killed and others wounded while trying to flee, while dozens of government soldiers and suspected militants are said to have died in the fighting. The exact circumstances of the deaths remain unclear.
Families fleeing the scene have described how government forces began shelling al-Hutah on Sunday, followed by tanks and armoured vehicles descending on the town, leading to clashes between government troops and suspected militants. The nature of the assault gives rise to concerns that government forces have used what would be – for a law-enforcement operation – grossly disproportionate force. Amnesty International has documented previous occasions when the government has failed to provide for the needs of people displaced by conflict or other violence in Yemen, most recently during the intermittent conflict between government forces and armed Huthi rebels in the northern region of Sa’dah, which began in 2004. In August 2009 the Yemeni government launched a military offensive against the Huthis codenamed “Scorched Earth” which included aerial bombing and the deployment of tanks and ground troops.
In November 2009 Saudi Arabian forces began to launch air strikes in Sa’dah after fighting spilled over onto their territory. The ferocity of these bombardments, particularly in the three or so months before a ceasefire was declared on 11 February 2010, led to mass displacement of Yemeni civilians; almost the entire population of some cities and villages fled to camps for the displaced in the nearby regions of Hajjah and ‘Amran, as well as to the capital Sana’a and elsewhere. A total of over 300,000 people have been driven from their homes in Sa’dah since 2004, according to the UNHCR, the UN refugee agency. Amnesty International published a report on 25 August 2010 entitled Yemen: Cracking Down Under Pressure which documented a catalogue of human rights violations including unlawful killings of those accused of links to al-Qa’ida and Southern Movement activists, and arbitrary arrests, torture and unfair trials, occurring in the name of security.
