By Faisal Abu Bakr | 2025-10-16

Lawyers and human rights advocates say the Houthi terrorist group has stepped up its repression of civilians and opponents, including the mass burial of unidentified bodies.

The group has targeted individuals celebrating the September 26 Revolution anniversary, using fear and brutality to consolidate its grip on power.

Reports point to a growing pattern of human rights violations, with the group disregarding the worsening humanitarian situation as it seeks to suppress any sign of opposition.

According to an October 3 report published on Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, the Houthis have intensified arrests and enforced disappearances alongside the mass burial of dozens of unidentified bodies.

Sites include a recent grave of 13 bodies in al-Jawf province, and earlier burials in Sanaa and Amran.

All were carried out without oversight from the International Red Cross or the judiciary.

The report noted that the bodies had been stored for months in the al-Hazm Government Hospital morgue, with no legal or humanitarian supervision.

Arbitrary arrests

"It is concerning that the Houthi group has failed to reassure many families about their detained or abducted relatives," Ishraq al-Maqtari of the National Commission to Investigate Alleged Violations to Human Rights (NCIAVHR) in Yemen told Al-Fassel.

"Leaked information indicates that the group may have liquidated or tortured to death several detainees in its prisons," she said.

Al-Maqtari said that the Houthis have a history of systematic arrests and disappearances in areas under their control.

"In the past few weeks, the committee documented and confirmed over 237 arrests based on family communications and recorded testimonies," she added.

She said the NCIAVHR has received dozens of requests from abductees' families seeking information on missing relatives, fearing they may be among those buried in mass or individual graves.

"The Houthis arrested approximately 450 people last year for celebrating the September 26 Revolution anniversary," said Muhammed al-Omda, head of the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms.

In September 2025 alone, the network documented 613 cases of arbitrary arrest and kidnapping and 123 home invasions.

"These numbers show a clear repetition of the group's actions against civilians across various provinces," he said.

Al-Omda said that the arrests and torture have affected broad segments of society, including politicians, academics, students, women, and children.

"The militia aims to terrorize citizens and impose fear as a tool of control," he added.

"Celebrating national events now results directly in persecution and harassment. This is a systematic policy designed to abolish national identity and impose control through force, fear, and humiliation," al-Omda said.