ARMS SALES: FRANCE AND THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, PARTNERS IN THE CRIMES COMMITTED IN YEMEN ?
December 2021 / N° 781a
Cover picture : © MARWAN NAAMANI / AFP
FIDH/GCHR/Mwatana/Observatoire des armements/LDHARMS SALES: FRANCE AND THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, PARTNERS IN THE CRIMES COMMITTED IN YEMEN ?
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................5METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................................6APPLICABLE LEGAL FRAMEWORK ...................................................................................................7
1. Specic obligations of the French State concerning arms transfers
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71.1. The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)
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71.2. The European Union Council’s Common Position 2008/944/PESC dening [common] rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment
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72. Specic obligations of the French State concerning exports of “dual-use goods”
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82.1. The Wassenaar Arrangement
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82.2. The EU regulation related to dual-use goods’ exports
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93. Obligations of the French State concerning the actions of companies
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4. The French system for controlling exports of military equipment: opaque and inadequate
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5. Human rights obligations of businesses
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5.1. The obligation to identify, prevent and mitigate the adverse impacts of their activities on human rights
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5.2. Potential criminal liability of companies – precedents from the Amesys/Nexa Technologies cases
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PART 1. THE UAE AS A KEY PERPETRATOR OF MASSIVE HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS ............15
Context and background on the UAE:
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PART 1.1 Grave human rights violations in the UAE
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A legal apparatus using counter-terrorism and cybercrime laws to curtail dissent
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Systematic use of torture
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17Enforced disappearance
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18Women rights violated in law and in practice
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19Migrants rights
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Human rights defenders
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PART 1.2. ROLE OF THE UAE IN YEMEN
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Impunity & international support
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Political context
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Key players
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Strategic objectives of KSA & UAE in the conflict
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24Political situation in the South of Yemen
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UAE proxy forces
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Identication of Perpetrators of Human Rights violations
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27Grave human rights violations committed in the South of Yemen
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28Arbitrary arrests
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28Enforced disappearance, including death in detention
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29Death following torture during enforced disappearance
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Arbitrary detention
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Detention conditions
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Network of unofcial and secret places of detention
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1* Balhaf facility and military base – (governorate of Shabwah)
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2* Al Alam military base camp (governorate of Shabwah):
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