63-year-old Sheikh Al Hatari was abducted by the Houthi-Saleh Coalition on 18 June 2015, during a raid of one of his relatives’ house, in reprisals for having condemned the armed group’ violence during its advance into Sana'a. As for 47-year-old Al Buriahi, he had been arrested with his son while driving through Sana’a on 22 January 2016. Although his son was released a month later, he remained in secret detention.

As the attempts by the families to locate the men remained unsuccessful, Alkarama referred the case of Sheikh Al Hatari and Al Buriahi to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced Disappearances (WGEID) in October 2015 and April 2016 respectively.

Alkarama reminds all parties involved in the conflict that they must abide by the fundamental guarantees enshrined in Article 3 Common to the Geneva Convention. The Organisation further calls on all parties to the conflict to adhere to the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and to end the practice of enforced disappearance, by immediately disclosing the prisoners’ location of detention and allowing them to communicate with their families at regular intervals.

For more information or an interview, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Tel: +41 22 734 1008).