Houthi court sentences son of former Yemeni president to death

A Houthi-run military court in Yemen has sentenced Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, the son of the country’s late president, to death on charges of espionage, collaboration with foreign powers, and corruption.

According to the Houthi-controlled Saba News Agency, the Central Military Court in the capital Sanaa found Saleh guilty of "treason, collaboration, and espionage with the enemy," as well as corruption-related offenses. The court ordered the confiscation of his assets and the recovery of embezzled funds, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media. 

The ruling also includes additional penalties linked to Saleh’s former positions in public office, the report stated.

Ahmed Ali Saleh is the eldest son of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who ruled Yemen for over three decades before being ousted during the Arab Spring uprising in 2011. The elder Saleh was killed by Houthi forces in December 2017 after a brief alliance between the group and the former president collapsed.

Ahmed Ali Saleh has lived in exile for years. He has largely withdrawn from political life and had been under house arrest in Abu Dhabi, following a UN Security Council resolution accusing him of facilitating the Houthi takeover of the capital Sana’a in September 2014. Sanctions against him were recently lifted.

By Sabina Mammadli