Yemen Monitor/Sana’a/Exclusive:
The US announced on Monday that it had imposed sanctions on the Houthi National Committee for Prisoners Affairs and its chairman, who is accused of torturing political prisoners.
The US State Department said in a statement: “Sanctions have been imposed on Abdulqader Hassan Yahya al-Murtadha, chairman of the National Committee for Prisoners Affairs, and the National Committee for Prisoners Affairs itself due to their involvement in serious human rights abuses in Yemen.”
It indicated that al-Murtadha, in his role as chairman of the National Committee for Prisoners Affairs, has been directly involved in the torture of prisoners and other forms of cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment or punishment of detainees in Houthi prisons, which continue to hold individuals who have exercised their human rights and fundamental freedoms, including journalists, human rights defenders, political opponents, local staff of the United Nations, and non-governmental organizations, as well as US embassy staff, among others.
The statement said that these designations are intended to publicly condemn the Houthis for their ongoing gross human rights abuses.
It added: “These designations also aim to pressure the Houthis and reinforce other US government efforts to secure the release of those unjustly detained in Houthi prisons, including our own staff.”
It continued: “We are committed to continuing our efforts to promote accountability for those who commit gross human rights abuses and to prevent them from accessing US and international financial institutions.”
It added: “We will continue to use these tools to promote accountability for individuals who fuel the violence in Yemen, including so-called Houthi officials.”
In this context, the internationally recognized government welcomed the US administration’s decision to impose sanctions on the Houthi committee.
The government considered the decision an important step towards holding accountable the criminals whose hands are stained with the blood of the innocent and who have committed the worst crimes and abuses against Yemenis, according to the official Saba news agency.
