UN body tells Saudis to protect children

A UN human rights watchdog called on Saudi Arabia on Friday to end "severe" discrimination against girls and to repeal laws that allow the stoning, amputation, flogging and execution of children.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child condemned the Saudi-led coalition's air strikes in Yemen, which it said had killed and maimed hundreds of children, and its "use of starvation" as a tactic in that war against Iran-backed Houthis.

The committee's 18 independent experts examined the kingdom's record of compliance with a UN treaty protecting the rights of people under the age of 18.