Geneva – On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, observed on 26 June, SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties affirms that torture remains one of the gravest systematic violations endured by thousands of Yemenis in various places of detention. The continued impunity surrounding this crime has helped entrench it and turn it into a recurring practice that threatens the rule of law and undermines prospects for peace and justice.
This day is being marked at a time when victims of torture and their families in Yemen continue to search for truth and redress, while many of those responsible for these violations remain beyond accountability. The significance of this day lies in its reminder of the international community’s obligation to uphold the absolute prohibition of torture, as a crime under international law that cannot be justified under any circumstances, whether on grounds of security, war, counterterrorism, or the protection of public order.
SAM notes that the conflict, which has continued for more than a decade, has created a fertile environment for the spread of various forms of torture and ill-treatment inside official and unofficial places of detention. During the period 2025–2026, SAM documented dozens of cases involving severe beatings, prolonged solitary confinement, enforced disappearance, denial of medical care, and psychological humiliation.
SAM stresses that the torture cases it has documented are not limited to the past two years. Since 2016, the organization has been among the first human rights entities to expose the network of illegal prisons and secret detention facilities in Yemen, breaking through the wall of denial and secrecy that surrounded these violations at the time. Through its in-depth reports and the testimonies it collected from victims, the organization helped expose systematic patterns of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture.
The organization expresses grave concern over continued reports of detainees dying inside prisons under the control of the Houthi group, or shortly after their release, as a result of torture and medical neglect. Among these cases are the death of captive Muath Hameed Nasser Tafyan inside one of the group’s detention centers in Sana’a; the death of prisoner Abdulkarim Abdullah Mohammed Al-Faqih inside the prison of the Dhi Al-Sufal Prosecution Office in Ibb Governorate under suspicious circumstances, despite a court order for his release; and the death of educator Ahmed Abdullah Saleh Al-Halmani days after his release, as a result of torture he had endured during his detention.
SAM also affirms that the issue of secret prisons and related violations remains one of the most urgent human rights files in Yemen. Victim testimonies and documented incidents during 2025 and 2026 revealed continued allegations of torture inside unofficial detention centers in Aden and Hadramout, requiring independent and transparent investigations that ensure the truth is revealed and those responsible are held accountable.
In this context, the report of the Panel of Experts issued in October 2025 revealed that human rights violations against women in detention centers are being committed on a widespread and systematic basis. The Houthis established the “Zainabiyat Unit,” affiliated with the Security and Intelligence Service, as a women’s unit responsible for managing prisons and carrying out repression and intelligence operations. Members of this unit use electric shock devices against detained women, whether during demonstrations or inside cells, as a tool of intimidation and physical torture.
The brutal methods of torture inflicted on female detainees include “suspension” techniques, the removal of fingernails, severe beatings, prolonged solitary confinement, and deprivation of food and basic medical care. These abuses are intended to extract forced confessions or compel detainees to sign documents and pledges under coercion, amid detention conditions that fail to meet the most basic humanitarian standards.
Sexual violence committed in detention centers is also among the gravest documented violations. Women and girls are reportedly lured and transferred to designated detention sites where they are subjected to repeated rape by fighters. According to the report, the Zainabiyat play central roles in these operations by luring victims through what is known as “sexual entrapment,” and later using them for blackmail or to defame female activists and opponents.
The organization expresses concern over reports indicating that some individuals whose names have appeared in victims’ testimonies or in previous human rights reports have been recycled into new security or executive positions. This sends a negative message to victims and undermines trust in state institutions and justice. SAM affirms that combating torture cannot be achieved in the absence of accountability or while those implicated in violations are rewarded.
SAM emphasizes that the suffering of torture victims does not end upon their release from prison. Many remain trapped by physical, psychological, social, and economic consequences that last for many years. Torture does not target the body alone; it leaves deep scars on memory, identity, family relationships, the ability to work, and reintegration into society. Many survivors find themselves after release without medical care, psychological support, or opportunities to rebuild their lives, while their families bear compounded economic and social burdens.
The organization stresses that ignoring victims’ needs after their release amounts to a form of prolonged suffering and keeps the impact of the crime alive even after the direct violation has ended. SAM therefore calls for the establishment of comprehensive national programs to rehabilitate victims of torture, including medical and psychological treatment, legal assistance, vocational rehabilitation, fair compensation, and reparations, in a manner that restores their dignity and enables their reintegration into society.
SAM believes that addressing this crime must not be limited to condemning individual incidents, but requires comprehensive institutional reform of the security and judicial systems. This includes strengthening judicial independence, ensuring effective judicial oversight of places of detention, criminalizing all forms of torture in line with the United Nations Convention against Torture, and guaranteeing victims’ right to remedy, reparation, and rehabilitation.
The organization affirms that the continuation of war, institutional division, and the absence of accountability are among the main reasons torture continues in Yemen. Therefore, any serious path toward peace must address grave human rights violations, foremost among them torture, enforced disappearance, and arbitrary detention, as issues that cannot be bypassed or postponed without harming future prospects for reconciliation and stability.
SAM calls on all Yemeni parties to immediately release those arbitrarily detained, disclose the fate of the forcibly disappeared, and allow independent judicial and oversight bodies to visit all places of detention without restriction. It also calls on the international community and the United Nations to support accountability and transitional justice efforts, and to ensure that perpetrators of torture do not escape punishment.
On this day, SAM renews its solidarity with all victims and survivors of torture and their families. It affirms that human dignity is not a privilege granted by authorities, but an inherent right that must never be violated. It further stresses that building the rule of law in Yemen begins with ending torture, uncovering the truth, providing redress to victims, and holding those responsible for this crime accountable, wherever they may be.