Mansour Al-Tharawi reaffirmed that his brother, who was recently freed thanks to concerted Saudi efforts, had suffered a great deal while being held captive by Iran-backed militias in Yemen.
In a phone interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Tharawi said that he had kept his faith in the government alive, noting that substantial efforts were exerted by the Kingdom to release Nasser Al-Tharawi from his captivity.
“There were personal efforts, as well as a number of tribes that were trying to help the family in the release of my brother Nasser,” Tharawi said on efforts spent outside the government. But he noted that those efforts were mere attempts that met no avail.
Noting that the tactful work combined with wisdom and patience resulted in the liberation of Nasser, Tharawi thanked the “tremendous effort exerted by Saudi authorities.”
He added that Saudi authorities worked from the first moments of his brother's arrest to find appropriate ways to liberate Nasser.
Tharawi said the family of the hostage was living on the hope that the government will be able to step in and free Nasser from Houthi dungeons.
Speaking on how Nasser was detained, Tharawi said: “All we received was a phone call from him two years after his arrest, and he told us that he was fine and alive, but gave us no other details. This communication was interrupted for a while until we received another call two years after his arrest.”
Nasser was held captive for four years in Yemen’s Hajjah province. After his release, he was reunited with his five children in the Saudi Jizan province.
With Houthi-staged human rights violations on the rise, Yemeni government reports revealed that the number of abducted and arbitrarily detained civilians in militia prisons has exceeded 14,000 people.
