Presidential affirmations by Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi concerning the central role of the judiciary in upholding the rule of law,

prosecuting those responsible for crimes, and protecting victims’ rights are significant. Their value, however, will depend on whether they are translated into concrete institutional measures that move documented violations beyond recording and allegation toward an effective judicial process, from investigation and evidence-gathering through prosecution and adjudication to enforceable judgments and redress for victims. These commitments come after more than eleven years of grave and widespread violations in Yemen, leaving thousands of victims and cases awaiting investigation, accountability, and remedy. At stake are victims’ rights to truth, justice, and effective remedy, as well as the credibility of Yemen’s justice institutions.

Background

Dr. Rashad al-Alimi, Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, has affirmed the pivotal role of the judiciary in enforcing the rule of law and pursuing those responsible for crimes. He has also stated that there will be “no impunity” and that no future political settlement can extinguish victims’ rights or the grave crimes committed.

Earlier this year, presidential directives were issued concerning the closure of unlawful detention facilities in Aden and governorates that had been under the control of the Southern Transitional Council, disclosure of the fate of forcibly disappeared persons, and release of persons held arbitrarily.

Over more than eleven years of conflict, violations have been attributed to multiple parties. The Houthi militia has been accused of grave violations and crimes against civilians, while grave violations and crimes have also been attributed to other parties, including military and security formations affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council and, in other cases, government military and security forces.

The National Commission of Inquiry into Alleged Violations of Human Rights has documented and investigated alleged violations and, over recent years, referred thousands of completed case files to the Office of the Public Prosecutor. A United Nations document recorded the Commission’s referral of approximately 5,000 files to the Public Prosecutor’s Office and indicated that their review had been assigned to a judicial committee. The UN Human Rights Council has previously called on Yemeni prosecution and judicial authorities to complete judicial proceedings in accordance with international fair-trial and due-process standards and to pursue justice and accountability for violations and abuses.

Reports have documented cases of enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention, as well as continuing uncertainty regarding the conditions of some detention facilities and the fate of persons held there. Yemeni and international human rights organizations have also documented alleged violations through victim and witness testimonies, records concerning victims, detainees and missing persons, and photographs, videos, documents and other materials relating to reported incidents.

National Jurisdiction and Comprehensive Accountability

National justice institutions retain primary jurisdiction over investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of offences within their lawful competence. Exercising that jurisdiction effectively requires an independent judiciary and prosecution capable of examining facts, assessing evidence, and determining responsibility without political or other improper interference or pressure. This includes, where supported by the evidence and applicable law, examination of individual responsibility and responsibility arising from positions of authority and chains of command.

Accountability must extend to grave violations attributed to all parties. It should encompass violations and crimes attributed to the Houthi militia over the course of the conflict, as well as grave violations and crimes attributed to military and security formations affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council, allegations concerning government military and security forces, and any other actors whose responsibility is supported by evidence.

Comprehensive accountability does not require equating violations in scale, pattern, or gravity, nor does it require treating different factual or legal circumstances as identical. It requires that allegations of grave violations be investigated and that every person whose responsibility is established through evidence and fair proceedings be held accountable under applicable law, regardless of position or affiliation. The existence or duration of an armed conflict does not suspend the applicable protections of national and international law or extinguish victims’ rights to truth, justice, and effective remedy.

The presidential affirmation that there will be “no impunity,” and that a future political settlement cannot erase victims’ rights or grave crimes, should therefore be reflected in a functioning process of investigation, prosecution, adjudication, enforcement, and redress. Political settlements cannot substitute for judicial processes concerning criminal responsibility or remove rights that arise under applicable law.

Detention, Enforced Disappearance, and Judicial Oversight

The detention and enforced-disappearance file provides a concrete test of whether commitments to accountability can produce measurable institutional results. The presidential directives concerning unlawful detention facilities, the fate of forcibly disappeared persons, and arbitrarily detained persons require implementation through procedures that can be independently verified.

Reports of continuing enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention, together with insufficient information concerning some detention facilities and the fate of persons held there, warrant scrutiny of the implementation of those directives. Effective implementation requires that all detention and law-enforcement institutions operate under clear legal authority and judicial oversight, that deprivation of liberty be subject to lawful procedures, and that allegations of unlawful detention, enforced disappearance, torture, and other ill-treatment be promptly and impartially examined.

Reinforcing the rule of law therefore requires competent justice institutions to examine allegations concerning detention and disappearance, establish the fate and whereabouts of disappeared persons, and hold accountable those whose responsibility is established through lawful proceedings. It also requires effective safeguards against recurrence and meaningful remedies for victims.

The Fate of Investigative Files and the Accountability Gap

The effectiveness of the justice process must also be measured by what happens to cases already documented, investigated, and referred to competent authorities. The thousands of files accumulated by national investigative mechanisms represent a substantial body of documented material, but their institutional value ultimately depends on whether they progress through the justice system.

A referred file should not mark the end of an institutional process. Its trajectory should be capable of being followed through review, completion of investigative procedures where necessary, initiation of criminal proceedings where the evidence warrants, referral to competent courts, adjudication, enforcement of judgments, and effective remedies for victims.

The National Commission of Inquiry has reported the delivery of thousands of completed investigation files to the Public Prosecutor’s Office. A United Nations document has recorded the referral of approximately 5,000 files and the assignment of their review to a judicial committee. The existence of these referrals makes it important for competent authorities to provide an institutional account, in aggregate form and without compromising confidential investigations, of what has happened to the files since referral.

The Human Rights Council has previously called on Yemeni prosecution and judicial authorities to complete judicial proceedings in accordance with international standards of fair trial and due process and to pursue justice and accountability for violations and abuses. Continued uncertainty over the disposition of referred files therefore warrants institutional scrutiny of the stages at which cases may be delayed or remain pending.

Prolonged delays can affect the prospects of justice. Evidence may be lost or degraded, particularly digital material; witnesses may die, disappear, or become difficult to locate; victims and witnesses may face threats or retaliation; and the passage of time can make it more difficult to reconstruct events and establish responsibility. These risks reinforce the need for effective case management, evidence preservation, victim and witness protection, and transparent aggregate reporting on the progress of cases.

Human Rights Documentation and the Justice Process

Yemeni and international human rights organizations have accumulated extensive documentation concerning alleged violations during the conflict, including victim and witness testimonies, information on victims, detainees and missing persons, records of locations and dates, photographs, videos, documents, and other relevant materials.

This documentation constitutes an important informational resource for the justice system. It can assist competent authorities in identifying facts, victims, witnesses, potential lines of inquiry, and other relevant evidence. Its use in judicial proceedings, however, must depend on appropriate examination, verification, assessment of provenance and reliability, and compliance with applicable evidentiary rules and due-process guarantees.

A national protocol for rece+iving and referring human rights documentation would help establish a consistent institutional pathway between rights organizations and justice authorities. Such a protocol should define the competent receiving authorities; procedures for submission, classification, cataloguing, preservation, and verification; safeguards for digital material and chain of custody; procedures for referring material to prosecutors or other competent authorities; and mechanisms for following up on referrals.

The framework should also establish clear safeguards for confidential sources and sensitive information and protect victims, witnesses, and whistleblowers from disclosure, threats, or retaliation, subject to lawful procedures and legitimate judicial requirements. The confidentiality of investigations, privacy of victims, and fair-trial rights of accused persons must remain protected throughout the process.

The National Commission of Inquiry’s experience in receiving information, examining and verifying allegations, and conducting investigations provides relevant national expertise that could inform the development of such a mechanism. The objective should be to ensure that information capable of supporting an investigation can, after appropriate verification and assessment, contribute to identifying facts and responsibilities and initiating lawful proceedings where the evidentiary threshold is met.

Safe Reporting and Protection of Victims and Witnesses

An effective accountability process also requires a safe and confidential mechanism through which victims, witnesses, and whistleblowers can report alleged violations to competent authorities. Such a mechanism should provide multiple secure channels for reporting, confidential registration and preservation of information, preliminary assessment, referral to the competent authority, and follow-up on the disposition of complaints.

Protection measures should form an integral part of the mechanism rather than an afterthought. Victims, witnesses, whistleblowers, and their families should have access to appropriate safeguards against threats, intimidation, retaliation, or disclosure of information that could place them at risk. Rules governing the protection of identities and sensitive information should be clear, while any disclosure required for judicial proceedings should occur only under applicable law and appropriate procedural safeguards.

Measuring Justice Outcomes

Moving from presidential commitments to effective institutional action also requires measurable indicators of progress. Competent justice institutions should develop a periodic system of aggregate reporting covering, as appropriate, the number of files received and reviewed, investigations opened, criminal proceedings initiated, cases referred to courts, judgments issued and enforced, and remedies or reparation provided to victims.

Such reporting should not disclose confidential investigative information or personal data. Properly designed aggregate indicators can nevertheless show where cases are progressing, where they are stalled, and whether files are moving from documentation and referral through investigation, prosecution, adjudication, enforcement, and redress.

A transparent system of aggregate indicators would also allow institutions to identify procedural bottlenecks, allocate resources more effectively, and assess whether the accumulated body of documentation and investigation is producing concrete judicial outcomes.

Applicable Legal Framework

Yemen is bound by its national constitutional and legislative framework and by the international instruments to which it is party. Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Article 2 requires effective remedies for violations of Covenant rights; Article 6 protects the right to life; Article 7 prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment; Article 9 protects liberty and security of person and prohibits arbitrary detention; and Article 14 guarantees a fair and public hearing before a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal established by law. These provisions are directly relevant to detention, ill-treatment, access to justice, and the independence and fairness of judicial proceedings.

The Convention Against Torture requires States Parties to take effective measures to prevent torture and, where there are reasonable grounds to believe that torture has occurred, to ensure a prompt and impartial investigation by competent authorities. These obligations are relevant to allegations of torture or ill-treatment in detention and to accountability for those responsible.

Where violations occur in the context of a non-international armed conflict, international humanitarian law applies alongside applicable international human rights law. Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions establishes minimum protections for persons taking no active part in hostilities and persons placed hors de combat, including persons deprived of liberty. Additional Protocol II provides further protections applicable in non-international armed conflicts. The application of these rules does not remove applicable human rights obligations.

The Updated Set of Principles for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights through Action to Combat Impunity and the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation provide relevant standards concerning victims’ rights to effective remedies, investigation, accountability, and reparation. The Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance provides standards concerning investigation and clarification of the fate and whereabouts of disappeared persons. The UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary establish relevant standards concerning judicial independence and impartiality.

Demands Aligned with International Human Rights Standards

Restoring the effectiveness of state institutions and reaffirming the rule of law require more than presidential commitments; they require justice institutions capable of protecting rights, investigating violations, determining responsibility through fair proceedings, and providing victims with effective remedies. Translating the stated commitment to “no impunity” into measurable judicial outcomes would strengthen public confidence in national institutions and establish a more credible foundation for justice, accountability, and non-recurrence.

Women Journalists Without Chains

Geneva, Switzerland — August 19, 2026