The Yemeni government yesterday called on the United Nations to intervene “by all means” and prevent the Houthis from executing 30 political activists in Sanaa.

In a letter sent by Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Hadrami to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet and UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, the official discussed “the need to intervene by all possible means to stop the Houthi militias from executing a group of civilian, activists and journalists”.

He added that this was “part of a series of sham trials in which the militias are blatantly violating the human rights guaranteed by all international covenants and norms”.

“The Houthi militia’s mock trials and the issuance of death sentences against innocent citizens mentioned in the prisoner exchange deal in the Stockholm agreement, represent extrajudicial killings,” Hadrami said.

On Tuesday, death sentences were issued against 30 detainees including leader of the Islamic Islah Party Nasr Al-Salami and Professor of linguistics at Sana’a University, Yusuf Al-Boab on charges of spying for Saudi Arabia and its allies in the anti-Houthi coalition.

The detainees have denied all charges against them and accuse the Houthis of using the judiciary for revenge.