The family of Yemeni Talal Mahdi has urged authorities to uphold their right to retribution and rejected any suggestion of a pardon for an Indian nurse convicted of his murder.
The death sentence of Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kerala in southern India, was set for July 16 in Sanaa for the murder and dismemberment of Mr Mahdi in 2017. Her execution was postponed after an 11th-hour appeal from her family was accepted by Yemeni prosecutors.
Mr Mahdi’s relatives have questioned the reprieve and called for a new execution date, turning down mediation efforts by the nurse's family and supporters.
“The false rumours have made the family of the victim all the more determined for the death sentence to be carried out and to close off any avenue of communication with them regarding a pardon,” Waddah Qutaish, the Mahdi family lawyer, told The National.
Abdel Fattah Mahdi, Talal's elder brother, has denied media reports that an Indian spiritual leader last month evoked the family’s forgiveness to revoke the death penalty.
In a petition to the Attorney General, Mr Mahdi called for “prompt execution of the qisas [retribution] ruling against the convicted Nimisha Priya”.
"We, the legal heirs of the victim, reaffirm our full commitment to our legitimate right to the implementation of the qisas ruling. We categorically reject all attempts at reconciliation or mediation," he said in a Facebook post.
The family has described the murder as a “crime beyond all bounds of humanity”.
Ms Priya’s mother, Prema Kumari, in Sanaa to support her daughter, said she respected Mr Mahdi’s family and appealed for forgiveness.
What caused the delay?
Mr Qutaish told The National that the presidential authority postponed the execution to allow time for a possible settlement between the Yemeni family and Indian authorities.
“There wasn’t direct contact between the blood guardian and the Indian side. However, they asked for help from local mediation people in Yemen, not the family of the victim,” the lawyer said.
“Those local mediation people met the family but they didn’t like their attitude in forcing the settlement. The family doesn’t want to communicate with the local mediation. Those people speak about the case in the name of the blood guardians but they aren’t.
“We still insist on execution and have made a request to the Yemeni authority to set a new date for execution.”
Mr Qutaish said arranging a new execution date might take months or even a year.
What next?
Senior lawyers in Yemen explained the legal complexities and what possibilities may lie ahead.
“Delays in judicial proceedings are common in Yemen,” said Abdulla Luqman, managing partner of Luqman Legal, a leading law firm in Sanaa. “Additionally, the involvement of foreign nationals and international attention may introduce procedural complexities that contribute to further delays.”
He said that, despite the binding nature of the death sentence issued against Ms Priya and upheld by Yemen’s Supreme Court, the postponement opened the door to two remaining legal possibilities under Yemeni law “deeply rooted in Islamic Sharia principles, particularly those governing qisas and diya [blood money]”.
The first path covers unconditional pardon and, if the family of Mr Mahdi agreed to a full pardon, the death sentence would be cancelled. The court then may impose a discretionary sentence of ta’zir that often results in a prison term rather than capital punishment. If the family accepted blood money as compensation, then the legal consequence is also a cancellation of the death sentence.
“Similar to an unconditional pardon, this would likely be followed by a reduced custodial sentence at the discretion of the court,” Mr Luqman said.
“These two options represent the only lawful means of halting the execution once the death sentence has been finalised, since the state does not possess the authority to pardon in such cases — that right rests solely with the victim’s heirs.”
If reconciliation fails
If all attempts at approaching the family fail, the next steps would be for the public prosecution and judicial authorities to set a new execution date and notify Mr Mahdi’s family.
“If the victim’s family continues to reject all forms of reconciliation, including both unconditional pardon and the acceptance of diya – a position they have publicly and consistently maintained – then the legal avenues are effectively exhausted,” Mr Luqman said.
“The process is at a critical juncture where failure to reach reconciliation will lead to resumption of the execution schedule.”
When will this end?
In petitions to authorities, Mr Mahdi’s family pointed out that they have waited for justice for more than eight years, and the execution was ratified by Yemen’s President and the Attorney General’s order in 2024.
Mr Luqman explained Yemeni law permitted postponing execution "until further notice," especially while reconciliation efforts were continuing.
“This postponement can last days, months, or even longer, depending on the progress of efforts to secure a pardon or acceptance of diya,” he said.
“Although no specific legal deadline exists for carrying out the sentence after such a delay, once the victim’s family explicitly rejects any pardon or diya, authorities generally proceed to set a new execution date within a few weeks.”
Who has final say?
Mr Mahdi’s case falls under a crime committed in a qisas case or one of retributive justice where the final decision rests with the victim’s family.
“They have the full right to either pardon the offender or accept diya (monetary compensation in exchange for relinquishing the right to retribution). The execution is only carried out if the family explicitly refuses both options,” Mr Luqman said.
The qisas penalty refers to intentional murder and grants the victim’s family the right to demand retribution or equal retaliation, pardon or accept diya.
Blood money
Ms Priya’s family and supporters have gathered funds from Indians across the world, including the UAE, for the diya. They offered $1 million as compensation for Mr Mahdi’s death.
His elder brother has taken to social media to remind people how the Indian nurse drugged his younger brother, chopped up his body, “slaughtered, dismembered and threw his body into a water tank as if it were nothing”.
Ms Priya’s family has asked for a pardon and maintained that she accidentally injected Mr Mahdi with an overdose of sedatives while attempting to retrieve her passport to visit her young daughter in India.
“In some cases, involving particularly severe or aggravating circumstances, the victim’s family may choose to refuse the diya, viewing retribution as the more appropriate course of justice,” Mr Luqman said. “This refusal can be influenced by personal, social, or religious considerations. Diya is an established principle within Islamic jurisprudence, aiming to balance justice with mercy and to provide an opportunity for reconciliation between the parties involved.”
