Poll shows most French oppose arms sales to Saudi-led Yemen coalition

PARIS, March 26 (Reuters) - Seventy-five percent of Frenchpeople want President Emmanuel Macron to suspend arms' exportsto countries, including Saudi Arabia and the United ArabEmirates, involved in the Yemeni war, a YouGov poll showed onMonday.

Pressure has been mounting on Macron to scale back militarysupport for the two Gulf Arab states over concerns that Frenchweapons are being used in the offensive, which marks its thirdyear on Monday.

The two Gulf Arab states are leading a coalition fightingthe Iran-aligned Houthi group that controls most of northernYemen and the capital Sanaa. The conflict has killed more than10,000 people and displaced more than three million.

The poll showed that 88 percent of respondents believedtheir country should stop arms exports to all countries wherethere is a risk they could be used against civilian populationsand specifically 75 percent for those operating in Yemen.

Seven in 10 people said the government should stop exportingweapons to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

"On the occasion of the third anniversary of Saudi Arabia'swar in Yemen, it is high time for the (French) government tohear this message," said Eoin Dubsky, campaign manager for theSumOfUs NGO, which commissioned the survey.

"Emmanuel Macron, who presents himself to the world as ahumanist president, must pass from words to deeds."

The poll comes as some European states, notably Germany,have curtailed ties with the Saudi-led military coalition.France, Britain and the United States have not followed suit.

France is the world's third-biggest arms exporter and countsSaudi Arabia and the UAE among its biggest purchasers.

Unlike many of its allies, French export licensingprocedures have no parliamentary checks or balances, making thesystem particularly opaque.

The poll showed that 69 percent of people wanted to see astrengthening of the role of the French parliament incontrolling arms sales.

The survey was conducted online between March 20-21 with asample of 1,026 people from various strands of the Frenchpopulation aged 18 and over.(Reporting by John Irish, editing by David Evans)