Where is Ahmed?
On a calm Ramadan evening, Thursday, May 9, 2019, corresponding to the fourth of Ramadan 1440 AH, Ahmed Fayez Salem Baymin left his home in the Eastern Dhaban area of the Ghayl Bawazir district, Hadhramaut governorate. The moments before the Maghrib call to prayer passed with a familiar rhythm: the aromas of food wafting from homes, and the sounds of minarets preparing for the call. Ahmed wore his traditional dress, performed ablution, and then left with his father and brother to the neighborhood mosque, as he usually did on nights during the holy month. There was nothing in the scene to suggest that those steps would be the last he took freely.
Ahmed was twenty-two years old, a student at the Technical Institute in Mukalla, studying Air Conditioning and Refrigeration. A simple young man in his ambitions, calm in demeanor, close to his family, and known among his neighbors for his good character. He had no known political or security activity, nor was he wanted by any party. He dreamed of a decent job and a stable future, like thousands of young people in his country.
After the Maghrib prayer, while returning home with his brother and a neighbor, a civilian "Hilux" truck pulled up beside them. Three men in civilian clothes and masked faces got out, not presenting any legal documents or official identification. They approached Ahmed suddenly, grabbed him forcefully, and although he tried to resist, they quickly restrained him, covered his head with a black bag, and shoved him into the truck, which sped away. It was a fleeting moment, confusing, leaving behind only his brother's cry and the dust on the road.
His family began searching for him immediately, moving between hospitals, police stations, checkpoints, and military camps, but they received no clear answers. Responses varied from denial to silence. Eventually, the family learned that the vehicle that abducted him had come from the Quartz camp in Hadhramaut, a camp belonging to the Hadhrami Elite Forces under the Saudi / UAE-led coalition. When his father went to the camp for inquiries, he was told that his son had been arrested by the Emirati forces affiliated with the coalition stationed at Al-Riyan Airport in Mukalla and had been handed over to them. After that, no further official information was released.
Ahmed was never presented to a judicial authority, his family was not informed of his detention, and they were not permitted to visit or communicate with him. Weeks turned into months without any contact or official statement. His room remained as he left it, his clothes in their place, while waiting became a daily part of the family's life.
About a year later, released individuals from the Al-Riyan airport detention center reported seeing Ahmed in a cramped cell, in deteriorating health, and confirmed he had been subjected to mistreatment. Those unofficial testimonies were the only evidence his family clung to. Despite this, no official party acknowledged his detention, and no documented information regarding his fate was provided. In a brief statement attributed to an Emirati officer when his family contacted him, it was mentioned that he was released two weeks after his detention, without any evidence to confirm that or clarify his whereabouts after the alleged release.
Since May 9, 2019, corresponding to 1440 AH, until today, February 21, 2026, corresponding to the fourth of Ramadan 1447 AH, a full seven years have passed with Ahmed's complete absence, without his family knowing anything about his fate or whereabouts.
Ahmed's case represents an instance of enforced disappearance according to international standards, where a person is deprived of their liberty at the hands of an armed group, and then their fate is concealed or their whereabouts denied, preventing them from legal protection and keeping their family in a perpetual state of anxiety and open-ended wait.
Every new Ramadan, the fourth of the month returns laden with the same memory: a call to prayer rising in the sky, a young man who went out to pray and did not return, and a seat that remains empty at the breakfast table.
The Saudi / UAE-led coalition and its affiliated forces in Yemen must disclose Ahmed's fate, as well as the fate of those who are forcibly disappeared in their custody, and immediately release him and all those detained arbitrarily in their facilities, close unofficial detention centers, cease torture and other forms of inhuman and degrading treatment, identify those involved in crimes of enforced disappearance and torture, hold them accountable, and provide redress for the victims and their families, and restore their rights.
