AL-MUKALLA: Yemen’s Houthi militia has detained 428 people during a crackdown on commemorations of the 62nd anniversary of the country’s 1962 revolution, a human rights group said.
Rights Radar, a human rights organization based in Amsterdam, reported on Sunday that the Houthis have arrested people in 10 provinces under their control since early last week for commemorating the Sept. 26 revolution in the streets, honoring it on social media, or calling on the others to celebrate.
During the crackdown, the Houthis physically and verbally assaulted people, abducted them, and have prevented them from contacting or seeing their families, according to the organization.
“Rights Radar has called on the Houthi militia to release all those abducted and detained during these campaigns immediately and to end the ongoing prosecutions related to these celebrations, as security forces are still pursuing dozens in many areas under Houthi control,” it said in a statement.
The province of Ibb had the most detentions, with 179, followed by Sanaa with 109, Dhamar with 56, Hodeidah with 37, and Taiz with 13 cases.
Mahweet, Amran, Hajjah, Al-Bayda, and Dhale also saw people abducted by the militia.
The revolution deposed northern Yemen’s Zaidi Imamate rulers, who had controlled the country for centuries, and paved the way for establishing the Yemen Arab Republic.
Yemenis say that the Houthis and Imamate rulers share the same ideologies that restricted the country’s rule to Hashemite families.
The Houthis have accused the revolutionaries of being tools for the US and other countries to undermine security in areas under their control, as well as to put pressure on them to stop attacking ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The American Center for Justice also said on Saturday that the Houthis launched a “large-scale” campaign against Yemenis commemorating the anniversary, resulting in the abduction of hundreds of people, including lawyers, human rights activists, political party leaders, and others in Ibb, Hodeidah, Dhamar, Sanaa, and Amran.
The center said that the Houthis deployed heavy military vehicles and forces dressed in military uniforms and civilian clothing to disperse gatherings, accusing the Houthis of violating international and local laws protecting people’s rights to free expression and peaceful assembly.
The center “calls on the international community and human rights organizations to pressure the Houthi group to end all forms of repression against Yemenis, immediately release all detainees, and ensure the right of citizens to express their opinions and participate in national celebrations without fear or intimidation,” it said.
