Michigan - The American Center for Justice (ACJ) is closely following up the disturbing news about the deteriorating health condition of the head of the Yemeni Teachers' Club, Abu Zaid al-Kumaim, who has been abducted in the Houthi group’s prisons since last October. The Center stressed that this continued detention without legal justification mskes the Houthi group fully responsible for his life.

The ACJ listened to the testimonies of relatives and friends of the Teachers' Club President, which confirmed that Al-Kumaim had fallen into a complete coma, after which he was transferred to the Kuwait Hospital, where he has been unconscious for five days.

Regarding the details of the arrest of the head of the Teachers’ Club, the American Center for Justice (ACJ) stated that the intelligence service of the Houthi group arrested “Abu Zaid al-Kumaim” on October 8, after surrounding his house and trying to storm it by force, in preparation for his trial against the backdrop of his leadership of the 3-month strike to demand the payment of salaries. 

Once the news spread about the deteriorating health of Al-Kumaim, teachers in Sana'a carried out a protest the day before yesterday to demand the release of Al-Kumaim and other educational leaders, including the Secretary-General of the Teachers' Club, Mohsen Al-Dar, the head of the club branch in Al-Mahwit, Nasser Qaish, and the head of the club branch in Rima Ibrahim Jadib, disbursing their suspended salaries and improving their employment conditions.

The ACJ confirms that the kidnapping incident violated a number of legal texts and rules that incriminate arbitrary arrest and threatening people’s safety without legal permission or a judicial decision. It also stressed that what happened with the head of the Teachers Club, Abu Zaid al-Kumaim, in terms of a serious deterioration of his health and the arrest of some union leaders, is a crime of kidnapping and deprivation of freedom outside the framework of the law. Therefore, the Houthi group must act urgently and provide full medical care to the head of the Teachers' Club and release him, in addition to releasing the rest of the trade unionists instead of the policy of unjustified restriction and prosecution against trade unionists who merely demand their rights.

The American Center for Justice concluded by calling on the Houthi group to immediately and unconditionally release “Al-Kumaim” and the union leaders, calling for the need to pay attention to the demands of teachers, most notably the urgent disbursement of their salaries without conditions. The ACJ emphasized at the same time that using the security solution and suppressing voices demanding their rights is unacceptable and clearly shows the behavior of the Houthi group in violation of basic legal rules.