Lawsuit: Virginia man was tortured, killed by Houthi rebels
WASHINGTON – The family of a Virginia contractor who died in Yemen last year has filed a lawsuit that accuses the Syrian and Iranian governments of sponsoring terrorism by providing material support to the Houthis, a Shiite rebel group.
News outlets report that the families of John Hamen, of Chesapeake, Virginia, and Mark McAlister, of Greenfield, Tennessee, filed a complaint in Washington in early July.
The lawsuit says Hamen was tortured for days and killed in November by Houthi rebels who accused him and McAlister of being spies. The men were arrested at the Sanaa airport Oct. 20.
Documents say McAllister also was tortured, but was released to U.S. authorities in April.
Syria and Iran — which do not have embassies in the United States — have not responded to the lawsuit.
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