NPR

In Yemen, Mothers Of Detained Won't Stop Protests Till Their Sons Are Freed

Mothers of detained journalists and activists in Yemen are protesting in public and seeking out international help.
Women in Yemen protest outside the office of the country's High Commissioner for Human rights.

The mothers of Yemen's disappeared fill city streets with the sound of their chants.

They protest outside the prisons that hold their sons, and the offices of human rights workers they feel should do more to help.

In Yemen's conservative society, women are rarely prominent in public life. But the women of the Abductees' Mothers' Association make themselves hard to ignore.

They parade carrying fake corpses on stretchers. They bring with them the children of the jailed. In one recent protest, they banged spoons on plates, incessantly, outside the office of the country's High Commissioner for Human rights.

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR3 min read
Barge Hits Bridge Connecting Galveston And Pelican Island, Causing Oil To Spill
The collision's impact sent pieces of the bridge, which connects Galveston to Pelican Island, tumbling on top of the barge and shut down a stretch of waterway so crews could clean up the spill.
NPR2 min read
Meet the 2024 Tiny Desk Contest winner
Every year thousands of musicians enter NPR's Tiny Desk Contest. This year's winner was announced Wednesday — an artist called The Philharmonik, with a song called "What's It All Mean?"
NPR2 min read
Strike Kills U.N. Aid Worker, Injures Another In Southern Gaza
The United Nations said that one of its aid workers was killed and another injured when their vehicle was struck on Monday in Rafah in southern Gaza.

Related Books & Audiobooks