Ethiopian activists in Yemen revealed that a team of lawyers has been hired to file a lawsuit against Houthi leaders at the International Criminal Court in pursuit of justice for the hundreds of African migrants killed in a fire at a detention center in the Houthi-run capital, Sanaa.
“The crime that the Houthi group committed on March 7 against hundreds of migrants will not be subject to the statute of limitations, justice will be served, and they will all pay the price of their crime,” representatives of the Ethiopian community in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Speaking under conditions of anonymity, the representatives reaffirmed that dozens of migrants are protesting in front of the offices of the UN refugee agency in Sanaa.
Despite Houthis threatening them with meeting the same fate as the fire victims, protestors have continued to demonstrate for two weeks in a row.
“Last Thursday, Houthis assaulted some refugees and kidnapped others who participated in the demonstrations denouncing the repeated crimes and attacks staged by the Iran-backed militias,” a Sanaa-based Ethiopian activist told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Dozens of Ethiopian migrants have organized a wave of demonstrations across Sanaa to reject the Houthi narrative of the crime and affirm their demands to expose and punish the perpetrators who set the center ablaze.
Houthis are accused of burning down the center after the migrants having refused to join their ranks.
Demonstrators also urged Houthis to disclose the names of those who died in the fire and release information about the whereabouts of those injured in the fire.
They also urged for the Iran-backed militia to allow giving the victims a proper burial.
Houthis have tried to pay hush money to the relatives of the victims, offering $150 as a down payment for each family. They also promised the victims’ dependents valuable support.
More so, the group has actively sought to conceal details about the crime, activists complained.
Ethiopian migrants are also demanding an end to international silence against the rampant crimes carried out by Houthis.
