GIDHR documents aspects of the aggression’s violations against the Yemeni people
The Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Rights(GIDHR)—in a report it prepared entitled “Detainees Outside the Walls of Humanity”—documented an aspect of the suffering of the Yemeni people as a result of the war imposed on them by the Saudi-Emirati-American aggression countries since 2015.
The report, which was recently launched by the Institute, in conjunction with the International Human Rights Day, stated that the Saudi and Emirati forces have established secret prisons in several cities and regions under their control to seize detainees who oppose their presence in Yemen, in addition to converting some vital civilian facilities into prisons and detention centers after stopping the services it provided to the civilians.
The detainees inside those prisons were subjected to the worst forms of humiliation, and the worst methods of torture were practiced against them.
In this context, the Gulf Institute conducted a number of meetings with victims who were subjected to torture, and listened to the testimonies of the families of some victims, and documented them in the report that reveals the enormity of the crimes committed by the Saudi and Emirati forces within the walls of those prisons.
During the period of investigation carried out by the Institute, it was confirmed that the Saudi and Emirati military forces established many secret prisons in (Aden, Marib, Shabwa, Hadramout, Al-Mahra, Abyan, Mokha, as well as Socotra Island), which are fully managed by Saudi and Emirati military officers and commanders, including eight secret prisons and detention centers in the Aden province: “Khor Maksar, the security belt camp in the Brega region, Bir Ahmed, the Insh’at camp, the Esnad and Da’am camp, the Brega region, the Al-Thallamat village in the Khalaf Brega region, and the 20th camp in Crater.”
The report monitored the UAE’s establishment of a prison in the Balhaf liquefied gas plant in Shabwa governorate, and the establishment by Saudi forces of a special detention center in Al-Mahra governorate inside Al-Ghaydah airport, which is controlled by its military forces, in addition to the establishment, development and management of prisons and other secret detention centers in Hadramout governorate, “such as Al-Rayyan detention center – located inside Al-Rayyan airport.” – The port of Al-Dhaba detention center, Rabwa detention center, the Republican Palace detention center, and the Gail bin Yamin detention center, are run by the so-called Hadrami Elite Forces, as well as the establishment of a detention center on Socotra Island called the Socotra Island Detention Center.
The Gulf Institute also reviewed information and testimonies provided by Yemeni detainees in Saudi and UAE prisons during its investigations, all of which confirmed that opposing the Saudi and Emirati presence in Yemeni lands and rejecting and opposing the policies of the two countries was the only charge brought against those who were subjected to arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture practices in Saudi-Emirati prisons.
For his part, the head of the Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, Yahya Al-Hadid, said, “We are drawing this report up for the international community to take serious and urgent steps and stop these crimes that are being committed against Yemenis under the cover of Arab and international silence. The policy of turning a blind eye by the countries allied with the Saudi and Emirati governments gave them the green light to move forward and continue to abuse the Yemenis, shed their blood and terrorize them.”
“The governments that are silently following what is happening in Yemen are direct partners in the violations committed by the Saudi and Emirati forces in Yemen, and must bear the responsibilities and consequences of their policies and put an end to the river of blood that has been flowing in Yemen since March 2015,” Al-Hadid stressed.