[19/12/2025 04:43]

ADEN - SABA
The Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms has revealed the documentation of 312 cases of arbitrary arrest and forcibly disappearance committed by members of the Southern Transitional Council in Hadhramaut Valley and Desert.

The violations including military personnel and civilians from various Yemeni governorates during the period from December 2, 2025 until the 18th of the same month.

The network explained in a report, a copy of which was received by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) that the cases of arbitrary arrest and enforced disappearance were distributed between 47 cases of arrest of citizens from Hadhramaut Governorate, 39 cases of arrest from Raymah Governorate, 28 cases of arrest from Taiz Governorate, 26 cases of arrest from Dhamar Governorate, 19 cases of arrest from Abyan Governorate, and 31 cases of arrest from Hajjah Governorate.

The remaining cases were distributed across a number of other Yemeni governorates.

The network confirmed that its field teams received reliable reports stating that elements affiliated with the Transitional Council carried out, on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, a wide-scale campaign of arrests and raids in the city of Ashhihr, which targeted dozens of citizens without any legal justification, and without presenting judicial orders issued by competent authorities, in flagrant violation of the Yemeni constitution and applicable laws.

The network pointed out that among the detainees are Mohammad Abdullah Baasel, Ali Saleh al-Obaidi, Rashid Hamad al-Qarzi, Salem Abdullah al-Jari, Hussein Saleh Baalawi, Aboud Hassan al-Ali, Karama Hassan al-Bakhit, Nasser Ali Jaber, and Saeed Saad al-Ajili

The network pointed out that it documented the kidnapping of two citizens in the city of Sayoon, one of whom was a underage: Shuaib Mohammad Naji al-Mahshmi (18 years old) and Hammam Jarad (17 years old).

It stressed that targeting minors and detaining them outside the framework of the law constitutes a serious crime and a flagrant violation of Yemen's obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and requires immediate accountability for those involved without any exception.

The Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms said: "These practices fall within a policy of systematic arbitrary arrests carried out outside the framework of the state's judicial and security institutions, and constitute a clear violation of fundamental rights and freedoms, most notably the right to freedom and personal security, the presumption of innocence, and the guarantees of a fair trial guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights."

The network added in its report: "The fate of hundreds of soldiers remains unknown at this moment, in the absence of any official information about their places of detention or legal status, which raises serious fears that they will be subjected to serious violations, including torture and ill-treatment".

The network called for the immediate and unconditional release of all detainees and abductees, the disclosure of their places of detention, and the guarantee of their physical and psychological safety.

It held the Transitional Council fully legally responsible for these violations and their legal and humanitarian consequences, calling on the Public Prosecutor and the competent judicial authorities to open an urgent, independent and transparent investigation, and to prosecute all those involved in accordance with the law.

It warned of the dangerous increase in the number of detainees and the continued systematic arrests of the people of Hadhramaut, expressing its deep concern and strong condemnation of the continued arbitrary arrest campaigns and systematic incursions carried out by elements affiliated with the Transitional Council against the people of Hadhramaut Governorate, in the context of a dangerous security escalation that undermines the rule of law, threatens societal peace, and perpetuates the reality of impunity.

The network called on the international community, the United Nations, the UN envoy, and diplomatic missions to exert real and effective pressure to stop these violations and ensure that perpetrators do not escape punishment.

It Affirming its teams' continued professional and impartial field monitoring and documentation, in accordance with international standards for documenting human rights violations, and renewing its commitment to conveying the facts as they are, free from any political considerations, in preparation for taking the necessary legal action at the national and international levels.

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