In their most recent report, the UN Security Council team of experts documented cases of torture committed by the Houthis in various official and unofficial detention facilities, including the prison located in the Central Security Camp in Sanaa, also known as the “Exchange House” prison.

Security Council experts unequivocally asserted that the Houthis are imprisoning women for various reasons related to the conflict, including their perceived affiliation with the opposing parties to the conflict, their political affiliation, their participation in civil society organizations or their activity in the field of human rights, or because of what is called “ Inappropriate acts.

Among the detainees are two well-known Yemeni models who were arbitrarily detained in February 2021 and sentenced in November of the same year to five years in prison.

The team confirmed that women detained by the Houthis are subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment, including by the “Zainabiyyat” (the women’s police). He said women in detention are also subjected to sexual assault, in some cases subjected to virginity tests, and are often denied access to basic goods, including feminine hygiene products.

According to what was stated in the report, rulings issued by the Houthi Specialized Criminal Court, or other Houthi courts, are viewed as fatwas, and therefore carry judicial weight in addition to religious weight, which can have significant long-term effects on the lives of the convicted persons. Especially with regard to their safety upon release.

Based on reports received by the team, it became clear that the Houthis are detaining children as young as 13 years old. Some of them are detained in moral cases, accused of committing “inappropriate” acts because of their alleged sexual orientation, and other children are detained in “political cases,” often against them because they or their families do not comply with the Houthi ideology or systems.

The expert report stated that these children shared the same cells with adult prisoners, and that the team received credible reports that boys detained at the Al-Shahid Al-Ahmar police station in Sana’a were “regularly subjected to rape.”