Imagine stepping out of your home to buy bread, only to be dragged into an unmarked car.
This is what happened to writer and poet Oras al-El-Eryani on 22 September, simply because he posted a satirical comment about the Houthis’ 21 September coup anniversary.
His story is just one of many.
Houthis’ Annual Crackdown: 26 September 1962 Revolution
Each year in September, the Houthis—who control Sana’a and much of northern Yemen—launch a familiar cycle of repression.
Since taking power, their security and intelligence forces have waged broad arrest campaigns against those who commemorate September 26, the anniversary of the 1962 revolution that toppled the Mutawakkilite monarchy and founded the Yemeni republic.
Sometimes, the arrests are triggered by nothing more than patriotic symbols. One woman recounted how her father was detained on Sana’a’s 70th Street for having a faded Yemeni flag painted on his car window while playing Ayoub Tarish’s song “Long Live September of Liberation.” He was taken to an undisclosed location, while his family was forced out of the car and left in the street.
Mass Detentions Across Northern Yemen
In recent days, more than 600 people have been arrested across Sana’a, Amran, Hajja, Dhamar, al-Bayda, Ibb, and Taiz. Methods ranged from home raids and street abductions to checkpoint arrests and village incursions.
Women Targeted Under Zainabiyat Militia
This year’s campaign also heavily targeted women and girls. The Houthis deployed uniformed forces, masked gunmen, and the all-female militia known as the Zainabiyat, which participated in checkpoints and field operations.
Women and girls were subjected to full body searches, and their phones were examined for any messages, images, or content related to 26 September.
The repression began even before September. Since August, the Houthis carried out pre-emptive arrests of community figures, imams, teachers, and activists in Ibb, Taiz, and other areas. the crackdown was designed to silence potential calls for celebrating the revolution’s 63rd anniversary before they could gain momentum.
Many detainees face no charges at all—amounting to arbitrary detention in violation of Yemeni law, which requires judicial warrants and formal charges, and international human rights law, which prohibits detention without due process.
Civil Society Silenced
Since 2015, rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights have documented dozens of unfair trials in Houthi-run courts, often on fabricated espionage charges carrying the death penalty.
As crackdowns intensified, civil society activity has withered. Many NGOs were forced to scale back, and the UN relocated its Resident Coordinator’s office from Sana’a to Aden, leaving the real number of detainees impossible to verify.
One of the few remaining defenders was lawyer Abdulmajid Sabra, known for representing political detainees and documenting abuses. On September 25, Houthi gunmen stormed his office in Shamila, Sana’a, confiscated his belongings, and arrested him. The raid sent a clear message: even legal advocates will be silenced.
Meanwhile, the Houthi-run Interior Ministry warned against any September celebrations, claiming “hostile plots” threatened national unity.
Israeli Airstrikes Add Fear and Confusion
The arrests coincided with Israeli airstrikes.
Local sources reported that one strike hit a Political Security prison holding hundreds of political detainees, triggering panic among families desperate for proof that their loved ones were alive. Families pleaded for phone calls or visits, but the Houthis dismissed their concerns, claiming Israel bombed the site to allow “prisoner escapes.”
The fate of many remains unknown. Reports suggest that Houthi intelligence has transferred detainees to secret facilities inside confiscated homes of political opponents—some of which were themselves hit in the Israeli strikes.
Keep up with Daily Euro Times for more updates!
Read also:
Zainabiyyat: The Houthis’ Veil of Truth
Looking for a Better Life: African Migrants Under Houthi Trafficking
Houthis Recruit Military Yemenis for Russian Frontlines in New Development
