Text of the statement of the Yemeni Islah Party:

The Yemeni Islah Party followed with great interest the results of the talks on the release of prisoners and abductees that took place in the Swiss capital, Geneva, on Monday. At a time when the Party expresses its welcome to any efforts that lead to the release of the abducted and forcibly disappeared in the prisons of the Houthi militia, it confirms the position of the Islah Party, which refuses from the outset to mix up and equate in the issue of prisoners, which takes place between forcibly disappeared civilians who were abducted from their homes and from the streets, and between others were captured on the battlefields and military confrontations, and this is known legally, internationally and humanely, but the UN representatives insisted to move forward with the concept of mixing up referred to above in response to the desire of the party that is the main reason behind creating this whole problem, namely the Houthi putschists.

Despite the foregoing, we in the Yemeni Islah Party supported the idea of finding a solution to this humanitarian issue, in which the suffering is not limited to the forcibly disappeared, but also extends to their families and relatives.

Regarding the procedures of absence and punishment targeting Mr. Muhammad Qahtan, who was forcibly taken from his home, and a complete blackout was imposed on his family and members of the Party to which he belongs, the Yemeni Islah Party holds the envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to Yemen and all those working with him fully responsible for collusion with the Houthi militia in the deliberate obscuration of the fate of the struggling Qahtan continues, despite the fact that he was one of the first to be abducted and also one of those abductees covered by the UN Resolution 2216. Despite all of this, the Yemeni Islah Party, when it was talking about Qahtan, it was talking about him and all his colleagues covered by the UN resolution, as well as about the rest of the abducted and forcibly disappeared.

The Islah Party considers that the UN envoy and his assistants are partners with the Houthis in the continued enforced disappearance of Qahtan and the suffering that he, his family, all his fans, and members of his Party are exposed to. Accordingly, the Islah Party calls on the President and members of the UN Security Council to conduct an investigation into this matter and to take prompt measures in order to release Qahtan and to hold accountable all those who have caused the continued human tragedy, suffering, and injustice to this day.

The Islah Party calls on the Presidential Leadership Council to assume its responsibility regarding this issue as it is constitutionally and morally responsible for Qahtan. It also calls on international organizations, ambassadors of accredited countries, activists, and advocates of freedom to take a serious stance regarding the continuation of the abduction of Mr. Muhammad Qahtan and to put pressure on the Houthi militia to release him.

Issued by the Supreme Authority of the Yemeni Islah Party

Tuesday, March 21, 2023