Activists call for boycott of Emirates Airline over UAE's involvement in Yemen war

The UAE, which is a key member of the Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's government, has also funded  trained and supported secessionists who seek an independent southern Yemen.

Rights groups and activists accuse the UAE and the Saudi-led military coalition of gross human rights violations in Yemen, including airstrikes on homes, schools and hospitals.

Using the hashtag #boycott_emirates_airline, activists have taken to social media to urge travellers not to contribute to the revenues of one of the country's most well-known companies. They have also called for a general boycott of all Emirati products to pressure the kingdom over its involvement in Yemen's war.

Clashes between UAE-backed separatists and government forces - who for years fought on the same side against the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels - have raised fears that the Yemen could break apart entirely.

The Yemeni government has in recent days accused the UAE of launching air strikes against its troops in Aden, while the Emirates says it was acting in self-defence against "terrorist militias" threatening the Saudi-led coalition. 

The coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 as the Houthi rebels closed in on Aden prompting Hadi to flee into Saudi exile.

The conflict has since killed tens of thousands of people - most of them civilians - and driven millions more to the brink of famine in what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.