Mwatana for Human Rights stated that it provided legal assistance, through its field-based female and male lawyers, to 479 victims who were subjected to arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture, and contributed to the release of 48 of them during October 2025.
Mwatana provided legal support to civilian victims held by the following parties: 246 victims by Ansar Allah (the Houthis), 82 victims by the Southern Transitional Council, 129 victims by forces affiliated with the internationally recognized government, and 21 victims by coalition forces led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The victims were distributed, in varying numbers, across several governorates, with Taiz recording the highest number (82 victims), followed by Aden (65 victims), Amanat Al Asimah (Capital Secretariat) (64 victims), Hadramawt (53 victims), Hajjah (31 victims), Marib (29 victims), Al Hudaydah (23 victims), Lahj (21 victims), Shabwah (21 victims), Al-Dhale’e (19 victims), Ibb (15 victims), Abyan (15 victims), Sana’a (15 victims), Dhamar (13 victims), Al Bayda (9 victims), Al Mahwit (7 victims), Amran (3 victims), Sa’dah (2 victims), and one victim in the Yemeni–Saudi border areas. Mwatana contributed to the release of 48 victims during October 2025.
During October 2025, Mwatana for Human Rights documented 91 new incidents of violations involving arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture.
Ansar Allah (the Houthis) bear responsibility for 47 incidents of these violations, forces of the internationally recognized government for 29 incidents, Southern Transitional Council forces for 8 incidents, while coalition forces led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates bear responsibility for 7 incidents of violations.
October 2025 also witnessed the continued escalation of violations committed by Ansar Allah (the Houthis), as the group persisted in broadly targeting employees of international organizations and civilians in areas under its control through arbitrary detention operations and practices, reflecting an expanding pattern of violations against civilians.
It should be noted that Mwatana for Human Rights provides legal assistance through a network of female and male lawyers across various regions of Yemen to victims of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and tortureperpetrated by different parties.
Mwatana undertakes its efforts in coordination with the victims’ families or on their behalf, following thorough documentation of all information related to the victim and the incident, and based on informed consent from the victims or their families.
The efforts of Mwatana’s Legal Support Team focus on ensuring procedural justice for all individuals who come into contact with law enforcement authorities or who are detained by armed formations that have become de facto authorities, with the aim of guaranteeing their full enjoyment of rights from the moment of detention, through investigation and defense, the conditions of detention, and through to trial.
