A Story of a Detainee Held by an Unknown Armed Group

The weight of each passing day has taken a toll on Yemenis, causing even those in their prime to stoop. Within this context lies the untold story of Sultan and his family, elusive like a valuable quarry waiting to be captured. Let us hear the story directly from their relatives. Sultan Al-Dhali’e (pseudonym, 40 years old) is a farmer and has no connection to any of the parties to the conflict. He was arrested by an armed group operating in areas controlled by the Southern Transitional Council. Sultan's brother (32 years old) says: “One day in early January 2019, while Sultan was planting in a field between 10:00 and 11:00am, he was attacked by an armed group of eight individuals riding in a brown military pickup truck with no number plate. Among the attackers was a person wearing a white thowb and sporting a thick beard, who was seated next to the driver. As soon as they arrived with the bearded person, they quickly got out of their vehicle and approached Sultan, while Kamel (pseudonym, 11 years old), Sultan's son, and we were checking the plants. They shackled Sultan and forcefully threw him onto the ground, ignoring our shouting and questions about what they wanted from him. They then dragged him along the dirt and gravel. The bearded man shouted, 'Drag out this magian apostate, the slave of Mullahs... We'll teach you how to incite and abuse your masters!' He then proceeded to spit on Sultan. I was powerless to do anything while my brother cried, shook and held onto me. The attackers were numerous and armed. I attempted to reason with the bearded man, but he warned me to mind my own business or suffer the same fate as my brother. Despite my efforts, I could not stop them. Two of the armed men then restrained me, and one of them struck me in the back with his gun. After they had taken my brother, the bearded man declared, ‘Don't bother looking for him, he'll be our guest.’ Despite several people witnessing the incident from afar, they did not intervene out of fear of the attackers. After my brother was taken, I was at a loss for what to do. I took his son Kamel and informed our family, who collapsed into tears upon hearing the news. I then approached my older brother (50 years old) and recounted the incident to him. He began to blame me for not preventing it from happening, but I reminded him that it was impossible to stop a group that was heavily armed and outnumbered us. Together, we sought out one of the area's sheiks and informed him of the attack. He promised to follow up on the matter and asked us to return home, assuring us that he would reach out if he received any updates. Despite this, every time I thought about the way they had taken my brother, my heart ached and my world seemed to narrow. We searched for Sultan in Hakwala prison, but the officials there claimed to have no knowledge of his whereabouts or who had taken him into custody. Next, we went to the Central Prison in Sanah, but they also denied having any information about him and said that no orders had been issued for his arrest. As we were leaving the prison, one of the officers approached us and, after hearing the description of the bearded man, suggested that we try looking for Sultan at the residence of a certain sheik whose name Mwatana for Human Rights has chosen not to reveal. He advised us to search there, saying that we might be able to find him.We went to the residence of the sheik that the prison officer had mentioned. The house was heavily guarded, and the guards refused to let us in. We told them my brother's full name and asked if he was there, but they denied any knowledge of him and said that he was not there. They also advised us not to attempt to approach the place again. We spoke to a security leader and asked for his assistance in locating my brother. He advised us to be patient, but when we requested that he write a letter to the Security Belt and the Transitional Council to inquire about my brother, he refused. He expressed fear of getting into trouble with them. We also reached out to sheiks, other tribal figures, officers, soldiers, and friends in the Security Department and the Central Prison, but unfortunately, we did not receive any useful information. Despite losing a lot of money and paying bribes to some people, we were unable to find out my brother's whereabouts. After two months of exhausting searching, masked individuals came to my house around 9 pm. They knocked softly on the door, and when I refused to open, they threatened me, saying that if I wanted to live with my children, I should stop searching for my brother and refrain from seeking any official assistance to secure his release. What was strange was that they knocked on the door quietly, as if they did not want anyone to know about them. Before leaving, they warned me, “If you keep looking for your brother, we will burn your land and house.” Their leader threatened me, “This time we have spoken kindly to you, but next time you will have an unpleasant fate.” When they left, I looked out the window and saw four masked men getting into a car, their faces not visible.This incident scared me very much, and I was afraid for the safety of my family and myself due to their threats. When I told my brother Abdu about what happened, he became even more fearful. From that point on, we stopped searching for Sultan. Unfortunately, the security situation remains unstable, and criminals and thugs are prevalent. We have no choice but to entrust the matter to Allah, and hope that he will protect Sultan. It feels like we are living in a jungle where criminals and killers roam freely, and we have no idea who is controlling them. We do not have any personal conflicts with anyone. However, two months prior to his arrest, Sultan had an altercation with individuals who were attempting to steal his land in the city of Dhale. He intervened to prevent them with the assistance of the security forces. At the time, my brother informed me that these individuals seemed to be members of extremist groups. My brother was not very talkative, so he did not provide us with complete information about the altercation and those individuals, but he was aware of the entire issue.”Nasr concludes his recounting by saying:We have no information or news about my brother's whereabouts. His disappearance has devastated his family. His wife and children have now gone to her father's house, and we provide them with everything they need so that they do not have to rely on anyone else. It is heartbreaking to see how much they are struggling. Sultan is a diabetic and suffers from occasional psychological attacks. He has no affiliation with any of the conflicting parties and has never owned or carried a weapon.