Systematic Houthi Crimes Against Assassinated Cleric’s Family

Women Journalists Without Chains (WJWC) strongly condemns the grave violations committed by the Houthi militia against civilians in Raimah Governorate,

particularly the targeted campaign against the family of Sheikh Saleh Hantos, a prominent cleric assassinated in early July 2025 in his village of Al-Muadhab, As-Salafiyah District.

According to WJWC’s documentation, the assassination of Sheikh Hantos was the culmination of years of harassment due to his commitment to teaching the Qur’an and Arabic and his refusal to enforce Houthi-imposed sectarian materials. In a large-scale military operation involving over 100 vehicles and approximately 2,000 fighters, the Houthis stormed his home, killed him on the roof, and seriously injured his wife and her mother. The family was then placed under siege, denied access to food, water, and medical care.

In the aftermath, the Houthi militia launched a brutal wave of collective punishment targeting Hantos’s relatives and supporters. WJWC confirmed that at least twelve individuals — including five children aged 10 to 16 — were abducted in raids on the family’s home. Reliable field testimonies indicate that the victims were subjected to physical and psychological torture in secret detention centers, as the militia sought to extract forced confessions alleging foreign affiliations — a narrative designed to retroactively justify the killing.

List of Documented Abductees:

1.    Anas Abdulrahman Saad Hantos (10)

2.    Abdulmajeed Yahya Abdo Hantos (10)

3.    Ghamdan Ali Mohammed Hantos (10)

4.    Asad Abdulrahman Saad Hantos (14)

5.    Bassam Abdulrahman Saad Hantos (16)

6.    Abdulrahman Saad Ahmed Hantos (48)

7.    Osama Abdulrahman Saad Hantos (28)

8.    Suleiman Abdulrahman Saad Hantos (27)

9.    Hamza Saad Ahmed Hantos (25)

10. Abdo Saleh Al-Hajj Saadoun (60)

11. Malatef Mohammed Ghaleb Al-Masouri (27)

12. Hamid Mansour Baqish (48)

In a recorded testimony from Taiz City, Fatima Ghaleb Al-Masouri — Sheikh Hantos’s wife and an eyewitness — revealed that the militia prevented her medical treatment in Houthi-controlled areas, fearing for her life. She described the violent raid as wholly unprovoked, emphasizing that only three unarmed women were inside the house at the time of the attack.

WJWC further documented the enforced disappearance of lawyer and human rights activist Mithaq Jaber Al-Haidari, abducted from his home in Sana’a on July 8 after publicly demanding an impartial investigation into the Hantos assassination. Al-Haidari had previously disclosed threats to his life and was lured to a meeting by a Houthi security official shortly before his disappearance. He has been held incommunicado, in clear violation of international legal protections for lawyers and human rights defenders.

The scope of the repression has since widened. According to WJWC’s monitoring, the Houthis launched a coordinated crackdown in Raimah, Amran, and Ibb governorates, targeting activists, journalists, and citizens who expressed solidarity with the Hantos family. This campaign includes arbitrary arrests, threats, and forced commitments to silence. Some individuals were coerced into deleting social media posts or pledging not to discuss the incident.

The family of Sheikh Saleh Hantos released a public statement condemning what they described as a campaign of “barbaric collective punishment” designed to intimidate the community and bury the truth. They disclosed that the cleric had been previously targeted by the militia since 2022, when his Qur’anic center was raided and burned. It was later repurposed into a site for ideological indoctrination. Despite ongoing threats, he continued to teach until 2024, when renewed pressure forced him to curtail his activities.

The family further revealed that the militia prevented a public funeral, looted their home, and forcibly buried the cleric under duress. They have vowed to pursue justice at both national and international levels.

Legal Framework and International Obligations

WJWC asserts that the assassination of Sheikh Hantos, the abduction and torture of children, enforced disappearances, and the silencing of dissent constitute serious breaches of international humanitarian and human rights law. These acts are prohibited under:

·         Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions (1949)

·         Articles 7 and 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

·         Articles 9, 19, and 37 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

·         Articles 7, 9, and 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

·         Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

These violations amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity and must not go unpunished.

Calls to Action

Women Journalists Without Chains calls on:

·         The UN Human Rights Council and its Special Rapporteurs to launch an urgent, independent investigation into the assassination of Sheikh Hantos and associated violations.

·         The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to uncover the fate of the abducted and ensure their immediate and unconditional release.

·         The UN Security Council and International Sanctions Committee to expand sanctions targeting those responsible and ensure full legal accountability under international law.

WJWC reiterates that impunity for these crimes undermines the foundations of human dignity and emboldens further atrocities. The organization remains committed to monitoring, documenting, and reporting all violations and supporting the pursuit of justice for all victims of political violence in Yemen.