Irada Condemns the Houthi Assassination of Sheikh Abdulqawi Ghanim and His Companion and Demands the Release of His Son

Irada Organization against Torture and Enforced Disappearance strongly condemns and denounces the grave and ongoing violations committed against Yemen’s tribal sheikhs and tribes.

The Organization also unequivocally condemns the heinous crime perpetrated by the terrorist Houthi militia, involving the extrajudicial killing and summary execution of Sheikh Abdulqawi Mahdi Ghanim, one of the most prominent tribal leaders of Khawlan Al-Tiyal, and his companion, Sheikh Saleh Ali Al-Qasri, in a treacherous terrorist attack that reflects the systematic conduct of this criminal militia.

Irada Organization affirms that this heinous crime forms part of a systematic campaign carried out by the Houthi militia to humiliate Yemeni tribal leaders, break their will, and eliminate anyone who refuses to submit to its sectarian dictates or declines to participate in its futile wars.

The targeting and treacherous killing of Sheikh Ghanim came following his courageous stance against mobilizing fighters on behalf of the terrorist militia for its attacks on the long-suffering Taiz Governorate. He remained steadfast in his conscience and the authentic values of Yemeni tribal society, refusing to become complicit in the bloodshed of the Yemeni people.

The terrorist Houthi militia did not stop at the treacherous killing of Sheikh Ghanim and his companion. It further escalated its criminal conduct by continuing to abduct and forcibly disappear his son in its notorious secret prisons, using him as a hostage to exert pressure on and blackmail his family and tribe, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, international human rights instruments, and established tribal customs.

Accordingly, Irada Organization holds the terrorist Houthi militia fully responsible, both criminally and under human rights law, for these summary executions. The Organization categorically rejects the militia’s policy of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and hostage-taking for extortion against prominent social and tribal figures.

Irada Organization further demands the immediate and unconditional release of Sheikh Abdulqawi Ghanim’s son, along with all abducted and forcibly disappeared persons held in Houthi militia prisons. It holds the Houthi leadership fully responsible for his life, physical safety, and psychological well-being.

Irada Organization calls upon the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen, and the International Panel of Experts to launch an urgent investigation into this crime and to place those involved on international sanctions lists and subject them to international prosecution as perpetrators of crimes against humanity.

Irada Organization declares its unwavering solidarity with the family of the slain Sheikh, the members of the Khawlan Al-Tiyal tribes, and all Yemeni tribes in confronting this oppression. It calls upon all political forces and human rights organizations to unite their efforts to expose the militia’s violations and reject the policies of Houthi terrorism.

The blood of Sheikh Abdulqawi Ghanim and his companion, together with the suffering endured by detainees and forcibly disappeared persons in Houthi militia prisons, will remain a living testament to the terrorism of this militia. These crimes must never be forgotten, nor shall they be extinguished by any statute of limitations.

Issued by:

Irada Organization against Torture and Enforced DisappearanceWednesday, October 21, 2026

Republic of Yemen