The following letter from Shannonwatch's Edward Horgan was published in today's Irish Independent.

The appalling situation in Yemen is getting worse. According to the United Nations 10,000 people - two-thirds of them civilians, including thousands of children, have been killed and 55,000 injured.

On 9th August a bus carrying children to a summer school was hit by a Saudi air strike in the town of Dahyan in northern Yemen. At least 47 civilians including 29 children, all under 15 years of age, were killed. Col Turki al-Malki spokesman for the US backed Saudi dominated coalition said the attack was "a legitimate military action, conducted in conformity with international humanitarian law".

On 2nd August several explosions hit al-Thawra Hospital in the rebel Houthi-held city of Hodeidah killing at least 26 people. The Saudi led coalition claimed that bombing was carried out by Houthi rebels themselves, but independent analysts said the bombing was caused by 120 mm mortar shells, made by German company Rheinmetall Denel Munition, who supply munitions to the Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

As well as the USA, three European Union countries, France, Germany and UK supply large amounts of armaments and munitions to Saudi Arabia. Three of these countries, US, UK and France are permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Ireland is also supporting these bombings in Yemen. On 10 July a National Air Cargo plane on contract to the US military was refuelled at Shannon airport on route from an airbase in the US, and it went on to make deliveries to air bases in Kuwait, Afghanistan and Djibouti, before returning through Shannon on 12 July. Djibouti is just across the Red Sea from Yemen.