The arbitrary detention of Yemeni journalist Abdul Ilah Haydar Shae was extended Wednesday by a special court responsible for trying cases of endangering state security, Paris-based press freedom group Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said.
The court ordered he remain a further 30 days in custody officially in response to the requirements of the police investigation.
The journalist was arrested at his home in the capital Sanaa as part of a brutal police roundup on August 16. He was accused of planning terrorist acts and using the media to give support to al-Qaeda. He was held incommunicado for almost a month before being transferred, on September 12, to the political security prison in the capital, run by the intelligence services.
The journalist was beaten and insulted during his arrest and detention. His body bore marks of injury particularly on the chest, when he appeared before the court. He also appeared to have a broken tooth.
The court also ordered the release of Kamal Sharaf, a friend of Shae’s and detained with him. He was arrested on August 17 and had been in custody for 37 days.
Abdul Ilah Haydar Shae was previously arrested and held by security forces for several hours on July 11. The journalists are the first victims of the authorities’ use of arbitrary detention.
