On Friday, international human rights organizations demanded the release of 4 Yemeni journalists facing the death penalty by the Houthi group.
This was stated in a joint statement by "Amnesty International" (London-based) organizations, Human Rights Watch (New York), "Samir Kassir" Foundation (Beirut), and "Mwatana" for Human Rights (Yemen).
On April 11, the Criminal Court in Sana'a (subject to the Houthis), in a preliminary ruling, sentenced to death 4 journalists and kept 6 others under observation for a period of 3 years.
The statement pointed out that the Yemeni journalists are "Akram Al-Walidi, Abdul-Khaliq Imran, Harith Hamid and Tawfiq Al-Mansouri, and they face execution on charges of spying for Saudi Arabia, broadcasting rumors, fabricating news, and publishing data to support an enemy country."
The statement quoted the director of the regional office for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, Heba Morayef, as saying that it was "a terrible thing that brave journalists remain subject to execution simply to inform the world of the reality of the suffering that Yemen is going through."
Heba added that on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day (corresponding to 3 May), the Houthi authorities should immediately abolish the death sentences and release all journalists imprisoned for their work.
For its part, Human Rights Watch researcher for Human Rights Watch condemned Afrah Nasser "illegal and prolonged detention, torture and ill-treatment faced by journalists arrested in Yemen," according to the same statement.
Afrah explained that the above is "a shocking reminder of the oppressive media climate that still exists in Yemen."
In a previous statement, the Yemeni government called on the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Human Rights Council to take urgent action to save the lives of journalists and release them immediately.