Yemen Monitor/ Newsroom:
The Attorney General in the temporary capital, Aden, Judge Qahir Mustafa Ali, ordered the initiation of legal proceedings to recover state property and assets that were illegally seized and return them to the public treasury. This coincides with government moves requesting the international community to impose sanctions on the president of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), Aidarous al-Zubaidi.
An informed source stated that the Attorney General, Judge Qahir Mustafa Ali, directed the Central Bank of Yemen to take seizure and freezing measures on accounts and balances in which public funds or amounts suspected of being linked to the seizure of state resources were deposited, while providing the Public Prosecution with the necessary data to complete the recovery procedures.
The measures included listing and recovering public assets, lands, government facilities, and state-owned properties that were reportedly seized during past years, while prohibiting any disposition, transfer, conversion, or withdrawal of funds and balances covered by the seizure orders.
Banking and financial institutions were also mandated to provide the Public Prosecution with data on accounts and funds associated with the entities covered by the measures, and to implement the directives urgently.
According to the source, a portion of the funds tracked within the local banking system has been frozen, while other amounts are suspected to have been transferred to different accounts or entities prior to the issuance of the recent decisions.
These steps come following the Yemeni government’s request to the UN Security Council to include Aidarous al-Zubaidi on the international sanctions list and to expand the scope of sanctions to include individuals and entities accused of undermining state institutions and obstructing the political process.
The Presidential Leadership Council had previously taken a decision to relieve al-Zubaidi of his membership and refer him to the Public Prosecution against the backdrop of accusations related to damaging state institutions and national security.
It is worth noting that leaders within the Transitional Council had announced early last January the dissolution of the council and its various bodies, while other factions maintained the continuation of its activities and called for protest movements against the government.
