Geneva – SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties stated that the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is a critical moment to stand in solidarity with those suffering in Yemen, where grave violations continue to surpass all limits. The Yemeni context, the organization said, is witnessing a dangerous escalation in the methods and patterns of torture—many of which go beyond inhumane treatment to become systematic practices that amount to crimes against humanity. It added that the horrific violations occurring in both official and unofficial detention facilities reflect a grim reality for hundreds of detainees amid near-total impunity. The organization stressed the urgent need for prompt, transparent investigations under independent international supervision to hold all parties involved in acts of torture accountable, as this is an essential step toward justice and redress for victims.
The organization explained that hundreds of detainees are being held in unlawful detention centers that are not subject to any judicial oversight, preventing the prosecution of those responsible for crimes against detainees. It confirmed that the network of secret prisons has systematically violated provisions of Yemeni law, particularly the Code of Criminal Procedure—specifically Articles 179 and 263–264 of Law No. 12 of 1994, which prohibit torture and cruel treatment.
SAM documented 99 cases of torture in Yemen during 2024, out of a total of 3,472 documented violations. Among the systematic practices of extrajudicial killings that year, 18 people were killed under torture. The report also highlighted the alarming practice of torture to death, which often accompanied unfair trials—especially in Houthi-run prisons—where the bodies of several detainees, including the wounded and forcibly disappeared, were later found.
The organization pointed out that international reports have documented a series of arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances targeting UN personnel and NGO workers. At least 17 staff members have been forcibly disappeared since May 2024. The Houthis, it noted, have published coerced confessions extracted under torture, with confirmed deaths inside detention centers. Furthermore, the UN Panel of Experts on Yemen reported in its 2023 publication that detainees held by the Houthis are subjected to systematic psychological and physical torture, including denial of medical care for injuries sustained from torture—leading to permanent disability and even death in some cases.
SAM also stated that detainees in Aden, including journalists and activists, were subjected in 2024 to torture methods such as electric shocks, prolonged restraint, mock executions, and denial of medical care. These abuses took place in both official and unofficial facilities, including Dar Saad prison in Aden and secret prisons supported by the UAE. Additionally, 38 detainees were tortured and otherwise ill-treated to force confessions under duress; they were later sentenced to death on fabricated espionage charges after being forcibly disappeared for nine months by Houthi authorities in Sana’a.
The organization further noted that African migrants stranded in Yemen are enduring “horrific and brutal” violence at the hands of warring parties, facing violations including abuse, killing, mutilation, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, torture, and sexual violence. Smugglers on both sides of the Bab al-Mandab Strait have also been accused of human rights abuses—for example, holding victims hostage and subjecting them to beatings, intimidation, and sexual assault. Some women were raped, and after arriving in Yemen, many migrants experienced further abuse, with some witnessing others die of starvation and mistreatment at the hands of those who had promised them safety.
SAM reported that torture practices documented throughout the conflict reveal a deliberate and sustained methodology used by the warring parties. Detainees in detention centers are subjected to both physical and psychological harm, including severe beatings with various tools, forced standing for hours (sometimes up to an entire day), being blindfolded and shackled, and being deprived of basic needs such as water, food, medication, and sunlight. They are also forcibly held in inhumane conditions in narrow, disease-ridden cells. These acts not only inflict direct suffering on victims but also plunge their families into chronic anxiety and financial hardship as they struggle to obtain any information about their loved ones.
SAM stressed that the continuation of such violations constitutes a crime against humanity under international law, which unequivocally prohibits torture and affirms that “no exceptional circumstances whatsoever—whether a state of war or a threat of war—may be invoked as a justification of torture.” The organization warned that the absence of judicial oversight and separation of powers enables perpetrators to escape accountability.
The organization called for transparent, impartial, and independent investigations into all acts of torture committed in both official and unofficial detention facilities and for those responsible to be held accountable in accordance with international fair trial standards. It emphasized the urgent need to activate legal provisions for compensation and reparation to victims, particularly Article 14 of the Convention Against Torture, which affirms every victim’s right to fair and effective redress, including appropriate compensation and psychological and social rehabilitation.
SAM demanded that all parties in Yemen immediately halt arbitrary arrests and shut down all unlawful detention facilities that fall outside the oversight of the judiciary or public prosecution, as these places provide fertile ground for torture and enforced disappearance. The organization also stressed the importance of ensuring that every detainee appears before an independent judicial authority within 48 hours of arrest, is granted the right to defense, access to legal counsel, and contact with family—consistent with the Yemeni Constitution and the Code of Criminal Procedure.
SAM organization urged the international community, particularly the United Nations and the Security Council, to intensify diplomatic and human rights pressure on all parties to the conflict in Yemen to comply with their international obligations and fully cooperate with investigation and monitoring mechanisms. It recommended the dispatch of an impartial fact-finding mission to Yemen tasked with verifying detention conditions—especially in secret facilities—and documenting torture cases as a precursor to prosecuting those responsible in accordance with international law.