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January 28, 2025 – Yemen –
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has publicly pledged its support for a campaign led by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Yemeni Journalists’ Syndicate (YJS), demanding the release of multiple journalists kidnapped or detained across Yemen’s conflict zones.
These concerns focus on several journalists who vanished after publishing critical work. Among them is Mohamed Al-Miyahi, who disappeared from Sana’a on September 20, 2024, just days after releasing an exposé on the Houthi organization. Fouad Al-Nahari, a YJS member, was also abducted in late September. Both are urgently called to be freed.
The NUJ’s statement underscores a broader “climate of fear” for media professionals in Yemen, where kidnappings and enforced disappearances are increasingly used to suppress press freedom. Additionally, journalists such as Wahid Al‑Sufi, Nabil Al‑Sadawi, and Fahd Al‑Arhabi have been in Houthi detention for varying periods in 2015 and 2023, while Muhammad Qaid Al‑Maqri has been missing in the Hadramout region since 2015 due to Al-Qaeda control. In southern Yemen, the Southern Transitional Council holds Ahmed Maher (since August 2022) and Naseh Shaker (since November 2023).
In the press release, IFJ general secretary Anthony Bellanger denounced the hostile environment for media personnel in Yemen—stating, “We strongly condemn the adverse working environment and climate of fear that journalists … endure in Yemen … We call on the de facto authorities and other armed groups to stop hindering journalists’ work and release all unfairly detained journalists”.
These actions follow years of press repression. The Houthis have previously sentenced journalists to death, with the NUJ and IFJ intervening to oppose capital rulings, such as that against Taha Ahmed Rashid Al‑Maamari in October 2024. CPJ and other monitoring groups recently reported new abductions of four journalists in Hodeidah and another sentenced for criticizing the Houthi leadership.
The campaign calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all detained journalists, specifically pressuring de facto authorities like the Houthis and the STC to halt intimidation tactics and allow free media work. The NUJ’s involvement underscores a growing solidarity from international journalist unions.
This mounting global advocacy highlights Yemen’s ongoing humanitarian crisis, where intimidation of media workers deprives citizens of essential information. The NUJ and IFJ continue to push for action from local power holders and the international community to restore safety, transparency, and justice for journalistic freedom in Yemen.
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