Riyadh: A statement has been issued by the Joint Incidents Assessment Team (JIAT) concerning the allegation that Coalition Forces targeted the Ibn Huwaidi health unit in Kitaf and Al-Baqa’a Directorate of Sa’da Governorate on January 30, 2017.

According to Saudi Press Agency, the JIAT statement responded to a report by Physicians for Human Rights, dated March 2020, which alleged that Coalition aircraft targeted the health center, resulting in nearly complete destruction, particularly of the emergency room. The JIAT conducted a thorough vetting of the incident, reviewing various documents, including air tasking orders, mission reports, satellite imagery, and open sources. They also checked the National Information Center in Yemen’s website for health centers and hospitals, and visited operation centers and related field units. The assessment of evidence indicated that the Ibn Huwaidi village is located southwest of Kitaf and Al-Baqa’a, but no coordinates for the claimed clinic were provided, and the JIAT could not locate it through open sources.

Further investigation into air missions by the Coalition Forces on the claimed date revealed that no air missions were conducted in Kitaf and Al-Baqa’a. Additionally, a review of missions one day before and after the alleged incident date confirmed no Coalition air missions in the area on January 29 and January 31, 2017. Consequently, JIAT concluded that the Coalition Forces did not target the Ibn Huwaidi Health Center on January 30, 2017, as alleged.