Yemen’s Houthi rebels must release all detained and abducted journalists without any conditions, government officials said on Tuesday.
Dozens of journalists have been held in Houthi prisons since the conflict kicked off in 2014, but only a few have been released under a UN-led prisoner exchange operation.
“We call on the international community and organisations concerned with protecting journalists to review the tragic conditions experienced by journalists in areas controlled by Houthi militia and condemn the crimes and violations against them,” Yemen’s information minister, Muammar Al Eryani said.
His comments coincide with the international day to end impunity for crimes against journalists.
“We remember with deep pain our fellow journalists in Houthis prisons, who face execution orders for their political opinions,” Mr Al Eryani said.
The crimes against journalists reveal the rebels' “ugly side”, he said.
The Iran-backed Houthis have been accused of killing, abducting, arresting, torturing and forcibly disappearing reporters in areas under their control.
Yemen is ranked 167 out of 180 countries in Reporter’s Without Borders 2020 World Press Freedom Index.
The country's deputy human rights minister, Majed Fadail told The National that the rebels have committed more than 2000 violations against journalists and media institutions.
“Their actions resulted in the killing of 44 journalists and media professionals and the arrest of dozens who remain under their control since the war started,” Mr Fadail said.
The rebels committed “psychological and physical torture against them and sentenced four to death,” he said.
The reporters were sentenced on charges of espionage in April but their conviction is the subject of an appeal.
Abdel Khaleq Omran, Tawfiq Al Mansouri, Harith Hamid and Akram Al Walidi who were sentenced to death by the Houthi courts are still in prison and were not part of the prisoner swap operation that took place last month.
“These crimes against journalists will not go unpunished,” he said, adding that justice will be served.
Mr Fadail said the government has been forced to call on the international community to condemn the crimes and violations against the reporters.
“Yemen has never seen these actions before, we want the Houthis to feel the pressure to release the remaining kidnapped journalists without restriction or condition,” he said.
Yemen’s warring sides released hundreds of prisoners last month in the biggest exchange operation since the war started.
Nearly 680 Houthi rebels and 400 pro-government fighters were flown between the capital Sanaa and the government-controlled city of Aden.
Mr Fadail, who is also a member of the government prisoner exchange committee, said they are in process of planning the next round of talks which will take place by end of this year.
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The%20specs
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The team
Videographer: Jear Velasquez
Photography: Romeo Perez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Models: Meti and Clinton at MMG
Video assistant: Zanong Maget
Social media: Fatima Al Mahmoud
'The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window'
Director:Michael Lehmann
Stars:Kristen Bell
Rating: 1/5
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
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Landfill in numbers
• Landfill gas is composed of 50 per cent methane
• Methane is 28 times more harmful than Co2 in terms of global warming
• 11 million total tonnes of waste are being generated annually in Abu Dhabi
• 18,000 tonnes per year of hazardous and medical waste is produced in Abu Dhabi emirate per year
• 20,000 litres of cooking oil produced in Abu Dhabi’s cafeterias and restaurants every day is thrown away
• 50 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s waste is from construction and demolition
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
Women%E2%80%99s%20Asia%20Cup
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
RACE CARD
6.30pm: Madjani Stakes Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
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Avengers: Endgame
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin
4/5 stars
The BIO
Favourite piece of music: Verdi’s Requiem. It’s awe-inspiring.
Biggest inspiration: My father, as I grew up in a house where music was constantly played on a wind-up gramophone. I had amazing music teachers in primary and secondary school who inspired me to take my music further. They encouraged me to take up music as a profession and I follow in their footsteps, encouraging others to do the same.
Favourite book: Ian McEwan’s Atonement – the ending alone knocked me for six.
Favourite holiday destination: Italy - music and opera is so much part of the life there. I love it.
Fourth Arab Economic and Social Development Summit
As he spoke, Mr Aboul Gheit repeatedly referred to the need to tackle issues affecting the welfare of people across the region both in terms of preventing conflict and in pushing development.
Lebanon is scheduled to host the fourth Arab Economic and Social Development Summit in January that will see regional leaders gather to tackle the challenges facing the Middle East. The last such summit was held in 2013. Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki told The National that the Beirut Summit “will be an opportunity for Arab leaders to discuss solely economic and social issues, the conference will not focus on political concerns such as Palestine, Syria or Libya". He added that its slogan will be “the individual is at the heart of development”, adding that it will focus on all elements of human capital.
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England's lowest Test innings
- 45 v Australia in Sydney, January 28, 1887
- 46 v West Indies in Port of Spain, March 25, 1994
- 51 v West Indies in Kingston, February 4, 2009
- 52 v Australia at The Oval, August 14, 1948
- 53 v Australia at Lord's, July 16, 1888
- 58 v New Zealand in Auckland, March 22, 2018
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
