Head of the Association of Mothers of Abductees calls for pressure on the Houthi militias and forcing them to release civilians unconditionally

The head of the Association of Mothers of Abductees, Amat Al-Salam Al-Hajj, called on the international community to pressure the Houthi group and others and oblige them to release the detained civilians unconditionally and investigate the violations.

This came in a speech she delivered during the side event of the 57th session of the Human Rights Council, which discussed the ongoing human rights crisis in Yemen and the lack of accountability that has led to continued arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance, according to the association’s official website.

Al-Hajj said that the conflict in Yemen has exceeded ten years, which has led to thousands of civilians being subjected to serious violations, as the parties have worked to reduce the space for civil movement and impose restrictions on opinion and expression, and human rights defenders have been subjected to violence, threats, and the detention of their freedom.

She explained that The Association and other organizations documented, in June alone, that the Houthi group had kidnapped nearly 60 people working for international organizations, including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, while hundreds of detainees in the group’s prisons are still being subjected to torture, inhumane treatment, and deliberate medical neglect that has claimed the lives of many of them.

She added that the Houthi group began to accuse its opponents of espionage and spying, detain them, and bring them to unfair trials based on confessions extracted under torture, and then issue death sentences against them. The sentence issued by the group on June 1st against 45 people shows the hideousness of these practices against civilians.

She also noted that the culture of impunity has taken root in Yemen, which has encouraged the parties to commit violations without deterrence, as the association documented the exposure of (1117) civilians to arbitrary detention, (148) of whom died under torture or medical neglect.

She pointed out that Yemeni women face a number of challenges, violations against them are exacerbated, their basic rights are subjected to excessive violations, and gender-based violence is increasing, which requires more work to alleviate this suffering.

She stressed the League's demands for the release of the kidnapped and the restoration of their freedom, the demand for justice and fairness, the accountability of perpetrators of violations against civilians, and the fight against impunity.

Al-Hajj called for pressure on the Houthi group and others to compel them to release detained civilians unconditionally, investigate all violations committed against civilians, including extrajudicial killing, arbitrary detention, and enforced disappearance, impose real oversight over prisons and places of detention, and emphasize the protection of civilians, including women and children, from all forms of violence and violations.

She also called for the necessity of giving victims a role in designing and implementing the transitional justice and national reconciliation mechanism and involving women and human rights defenders in a practical and real way in peace processes and negotiations.