Riyadh: A statement has been issued by the Joint Incidents Assessment Team (JIAT) concerning the allegation that Coalition Forces targeted the Al Maqna’e health unit in the Munabbih Directorate of Sa’ada Governorate on September 19, 2015.

According to Saudi Press Agency, JIAT addressed the claims highlighted in a report by Physicians for Human Rights dated March 2020. The report suggested that an airstrike by Coalition Forces damaged the Al Maqna’e health unit and implied that the intended target was the residence of an Al-Houthi official, rather than the health unit itself. However, due to the proximity of the attack to the health unit, the facility sustained partial damage.

JIAT conducted a thorough investigation into the incident, reviewing various documents including air tasking orders, daily mission schedules, mission execution procedures, after mission reports, and satellite images. Open sources and visits by JIAT members to operation centers and relevant field units were also part of the investigation. Additionally, the National Information Center in Yemen’s website, which lists health centers and hospitals, along with Coalition Forces’ rules of engagement and International Humanitarian Law provisions, were examined.

The assessment revealed that no coordinates for the alleged clinic were provided, and JIAT was unable to locate the Al Maqna’e health unit through open sources. An analysis of the Coalition Forces’ air missions on the claimed date, as well as one day before and after, showed no air missions were conducted in the Munabbih Directorate during this period.

Based on these findings, JIAT concluded that the Coalition Forces did not target the Al Maqna’e health unit in the Munabbih Directorate of Sa’ada Governorate on September 19, 2015, refuting the allegations made in the report.