Human Rights Center Monitors Serious Violations Against Journalists and Activists in Yemen
Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) has revealed a new wave of severe violations against journalists and activists in Yemen recently. Reports include arbitrary arrests and unfair trials against a number of media professionals and writers.
The center reported an escalation in the suppression of freedom of expression, with continued restrictions on journalistic work and an increase in arbitrary detentions without fair trials, especially in Hudaidah governorate, which is witnessing widespread arrests of dozens of journalists.
In a disturbing incident, the Specialized Criminal Court in Sana’a issued a one-and-a-half-year prison sentence on May 24, 2025, against journalist and writer Mohammed Dabwan Al-Miyahi. He was charged with “undermining state security” and “broadcasting news that could disturb public security.”
The court also compelled Al-Miyahi to sign a written pledge not to write again, pay a financial bail of five million Yemeni riyals, confiscated his electronic devices, and placed him under surveillance for three years after completing his sentence.
Al-Miyahi’s trial stems from his harsh criticisms of the Houthi group on social media platforms. He was arrested on September 20, 2024, from his home in Sana’a and detained for several months in the prisons of the Security and Intelligence Service before being transferred to the notorious Habra prison on April 28, 2025.
The center affirmed that Al-Miyahi’s trial took place before a court not specialized in publishing cases, despite him being a journalist. The verdict was also delivered via a mobile phone screen in front of him while he was handcuffed and under heavy guard.
On another front, the center explained that 13 journalists and media professionals were arrested in Hudaidah between May 21 and 22, 2025. Among them were Walid Ali Ghaleb, Deputy Head of the Journalists Syndicate branch, photographer Abdul Jabbar Ali Ziyad, who previously worked with Reuters, journalist Asim Mohammed, and Al-Araby Al-Jadeed correspondent Hassan Ziyad.
It pointed out that the detainees are being held by the Security and Intelligence Service in Hudaidah without any specific charges brought against them. The Yemeni Journalists Syndicate condemned these arrests, describing them as an “arbitrary campaign” in a statement issued on May 25.
The center also noted the continued detention of actress and model Intisar Al-Hammadi, despite her having served more than four years of her five-year prison sentence. The Public Prosecutor in Sana’a submitted a request for her release on August 12, 2024, in accordance with Article 506 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, but no decision has been issued in this regard yet.
In a separate development, the center revealed the arrest of journalist Muzahim Bajaber, editor-in-chief of Al-Ahqaf Media Platform, on June 18, 2025. He is currently being held at the Criminal Investigation Department in Mukalla, despite directives from the Minister of Interior to release him on bail.
It clarified that the governor of Hadhramaut, Mabkhout bin Madhi, opposes Bajaber’s release. Bajaber, along with his colleagues Sabri bin Makhashin and Abdul Jabbar Bajaber, had published investigations into corruption cases, which led to coercive orders being issued against them by the Specialized Criminal Prosecution in April.
The Gulf Centre for Human Rights emphasized that these violations constitute a blatant breach of fundamental freedoms. It urged all parties to the conflict in Yemen to immediately release all arbitrarily detained individuals, respect freedom of expression and the press, and enable human rights defenders to carry out their work without fear of reprisal.
