Since his arrest, his family has relentlessly been trying to find him. Shortly after his disappearance, they were informally told by a whistleblower from the Republican Guards that Wasif had been detained at a detention facility controlled by the Republican Guards in the Muashiq area in the Aden Governorate and that he was later transferred to the Suwad military camp, south of Sana'a, but they were never able to officially confirm this information. Following the toppling of the camp during the revolution in 2011-2012, Wasif's family was again told by a whistleblower that he had been transferred to the Counter-terrorism Unit of the Ministry of Interior; however, just like during the precedent years of detention, the family never received any official information on his fate. As the Houthi-Saleh Coalition took control over numerous places of detention, Wasif's situation became even more alarming.

"Since 2004, the places of detention in which Wasif might have been detained have been under the authority of at least three different entities, none of which has ever ensured that the detainees under their control are all registered and able to contact their families and to challenge their detention," said Radidja Nemar, Regional Legal Officer for the Gulf at Alkarama, "this situation is creating a breeding ground for grave violations such as enforced disappearance."

Since Wasif's arrest, his family inquired about him in several governmental institutions, including the Security Department of Aden, the Ministry of Human Rights, the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Defence, but to no avail. His family then turned to Alkarama, in the hope that the organisation could help locate Wasif. Alkarama, in turn, seized the WGEID, asking this UN Special Procedure for the protection of human rights to call upon the Yemeni authorities to confirm if Wasif is under their control and, if so, to immediately release him. Furthermore, Alkarama requested the WGEID to call upon the Houthi-Saleh Coalition to inform if they are currently detaining Wasif and, should that be the case, to immediately release him or, at the very least, to treat him humanely and to disclose his whereabouts.

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