Yemeni minister: UN staffer may have been tortured by Houthis before death

Yemeni Minister of Human Rights Mashdal Omar said he does not rule out that UN employee Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Shami was tortured before his death by Houthi militants.

According to Al Arabiya, the minister said the circumstances of the UN staffer’s death remain unclear, adding that the Houthis seek to prevent any party from reporting their violations.

Yesterday, Yemen’s Ministry of Human Rights held the Iran-backed Houthi militia fully responsible for the death of Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Shami, an employee of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, following his abduction, enforced disappearance, and death in their detention facilities.

The ministry explained that the announcement of Al-Shami’s death came more than two years after his abduction and enforced disappearance by the Houthis, during which his family was denied visits or contact. The ministry confirmed that the circumstances of his death remain unknown and that his body has not yet been handed over to his family.