Houthis face kidnapping accusations after admitting detaining 25,000

Mourners denounce Yemeni rebels as funeral procession for activist turns into protest

Houthi supporters and fighters in Sanaa. The Yemeni rebels claim an activist who was found dead on Sunday had escaped from their custody. EPA

Yemen's Houthis face kidnapping accusations after they admitted to detaining about 25,000 people “recruited by the coalition” since war began in the country eight years ago.

Houthi official Abdel Khaleq Al Ejri said the rebels had “detained 24,965 members recruited by the aggression” — a reference to the Saudi-led coalition — “to carry out destructive activities”.

The rebels use this accusation as a "coat-hanger" to justify their detentions, former Houthi detainee and rights activist Abdullah Al Olofi told The National.

Mr Al Olofi, a spokesman for the Bahai minority group in Yemen, was briefly detained in 2018.

He was released because of his position in the community and after a widespread campaign against his detention.

"At some point, I was asked while in jail what my charges were," he said. "My own captors did not know why they had jailed me. It's a total farce.

"Some prisoners are kept despite court orders for their release, just so the Houthis can use them as leverage in negotiations."

The family of one Yemeni detainee who has been in prison since for over a year confirmed to The National that he remains jailed despite a court order for his release issued in January due to his deteriorating health.

He is also accused of "collaborating with the enemy", a pro-coalition faction.

Similarly, Jewish Yemeni detainee Libi Marhabi was granted release in 2019 but has remained in jail since his arrest in 2016.

Mohammad Aleumda, head of the Network for Rights and Freedoms, said the numbers, while staggering, hinted at a darker reality.

“These are the numbers they admitted to,” he said. “But what is hidden is greater in terms of violations, torture and forced disappearances.

“The Houthis do not abide by international laws, local ones or even local traditions and norms, which dictate that women, the elderly and children are not to be violated against.”

On Thursday, protesters burnt the rebels' flag on the streets of Ibb during a funeral procession for activist Hamdi Al Kholani, who died while in Houthi custody.

The Houthis claimed Mr Al Kholani had escaped from prison while inmates were performing ablution for morning prayers.

Yemen's Minister of Information Moammar Eryani said on Twitter that the activist was arrested five months ago when the rebels raided his house in Ibb and charged him with “criticising corruption and criminal practices”.

His body was found on Sunday in the basement of a building under construction nearby, the Interior Ministry said.

The circumstances surrounding his death led to widespread accusations of the Houthis being responsible.

Protesters taking part in the funeral procession chanted “there is no God but Allah and the Houthis are the enemy of Allah”.