Sep 15, 2021
USCIRF Releases New Report on Houthi Religious Repression in Yemen
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released the following new country update highlighting the Houthi movement’s repression of religious freedom in Yemen:
Yemen Country Update – This report assesses religious freedom conditions in Yemen. In addition to noting the alarming trends of increased Houthi persecution against Baha’is, Christians, and Jews, the report also discusses the case of religious prisoner of conscience Libi Marhabi, a Jewish man who remains in prison in Yemen despite a court order for his release. The report recommends that ongoing U.S.-mediated peace negotiations should include religious freedom issues as a foundation for a post-conflict Yemen where freedom of religion or belief is guaranteed for all people.
In its 2021 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended the State Department re-designate the Houthis as an “Entity of Particular Concern,” or EPC, for systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations. In December 2020, the State Department re-designated the Houthis as an EPC.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected].
Additional Name(s): Hasan Farhan Hasan Al Zaghli Al Khaledi Al Malki, حسن المالكي, حسن فرحان حسن الزغلي الخالدي المالكي
Gender: Male
Current Location: Ha’ir Prison, South of Riyadh
Perpetrator: Saudi Arabia
Ethnic Group: Arab
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Date of Detainment: September/11/2017
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: Yes
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Criticizing Religious Freedom Conditions Online Activity Religious Belief Religious Expression Religious Figure & Religious Leadership Role
Nature of Charges: Illicit Financing Incitement to Commit Crime & Violence Insulting Public Officials & Institutions Miscellaneous Religious Crimes Terrorism Treason & Sedition
Hassan Farhan al-Maliki
Extra Bio Info:
Hassan Farhan al-Maliki is detained for his religious expression and religious freedom advocacy.
In September 2017, authorities arrested al-Maliki, an Islamic scholar and intellectual figure, amid a wave of arrests of intellectuals and activists. In October 2018, the Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) formally charged al-Maliki with 14 crimes, including questioning the fundamentals of Islam, inciting demonstrations, insulting the Council of Senior Clerics, and seeking to destabilize the social fabric and national harmony. Saudi prosecutors indicted al-Maliki in part by accusing him of saying, “It is the right of any person to adopt beliefs that he sees as correct, and it is not permitted to restrict these or impose certain beliefs.”
Authorities have violated al-Maliki’s legal rights during the judicial process, and prosecutors have pushed for his execution.
Publicly Available Information:
- Photo used with permission from MENA Rights Group
- USCIRF Annual Report 2023: Saudi Arabia
- USCIRF Country Update: Religious Freedom Conditions in Saudi Arabia December 2022
- USCIRF Factsheet: Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court December 2021
- USCIRF Spotlight Podcast: Saudi Arabia’s Religious Reforms Not Enough October 2021
- Prisoners of Conscience Tweet September 30, 2021
- Prisoners of Conscience Tweet September 28, 2021
- USCIRF Commissioner Nadine Maenza, Tweet, September 23, 2021
- USCIRF Country Update: Religious Freedom Conditions in Saudi Arabia September 2021
- 2020 Report on International Religious Freedom: Saudi Arabia U.S. Department of State
- “Saudi Islamic scholar Dr. Al Malki at risk of execution” MENA Rights Group
- “Saudi Arabia: Religious Thinker on Trial for His Life” Human Rights Watch
- "Hassan Farhan al-Maliki" Grant Liberty
Sep 10, 2021
Islam plays a significant role in Africa’s past and present, with at least 500 million Muslims living in Africa today. While many Muslims in Africa practice their faith in peace and harmony, across the region some Muslim communities have been denied their right to freedom of religion or belief by both governments and nonstate actors.
Given the important role that Islamic traditions and practice play for many Africans, we examine some of the specific challenges facing Muslims on the African continent. USCIRF Policy Analyst Madeline Vellturo joins us today to discuss the range of violations in recent years that a diversity of Muslim traditions have and continue to encounter to this day.