Mothers of detained Yemenis urge UAE to release information

SANAA, Yemen – Dozens of Yemeni mothers have marched in the southern city of Aden to demand information about their sons, who are allegedly detained by the United Arab Emirates in secret prisons.

The protesters carried pictures of missing relatives and banners demanding that the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemeni rebels, which includes the UAE, either charge or release their relatives.

Female police officers prevented marchers from filming the event. Lawyers have been pressing authorities to allow families to visit their imprisoned relatives.

The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognized government has been at war with Iran-backed rebels, known as Houthis, since March 2015.

The rebels seized Sanaa, the capital, in September 2014 after they drove out the government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.