Sanaa (South24)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi revealed that he held talks with a senior Houthi official regarding the case of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, who is sentenced to death in Yemen, in an effort to find a legal solution for her case.

This came in an exclusive interview published by the Indian newspaper The Hindu, where Araghchi explained that he met in Muscat on Monday with the Houthi group’s special envoy, Mohammed Abdul Salam, and raised with him the case of Priya, who was convicted in 2020 of killing her Yemeni business partner Talal Abdo Mahdi in 2017.

Araghchi told the newspaper: “We are optimistic. I spoke with Mr. Abdul Salam, who confirmed his readiness to discuss ways to reach a solution to this issue.”

According to the report, Araghchi’s meeting with the Houthi official came after his meeting with his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar on Sunday on the sidelines of the Indian Ocean Conference in Muscat, where the two ministers discussed possible mediation efforts in the case.

محمد عبدالسلام يلتقي وزير الخارجية في مسقط

التقى السيد محمد عبدالسلام، المتحدث الرسمي ورئيس وفد المفاوضات لحكومة الإنقاذ الوطني اليمنية، صباح اليوم الاثنين في مسقط مع الدكتور سيد عباس عراقجي، وزير الخارجية.

وخلال اللقاء، أشاد وزير الخارجية بالتضامن المشرف لحكومة وشعب #اليمن مع… pic.twitter.com/R6xScwOyFu

— الخارجية الإيرانية (@IRIMFA_AR) February 17, 2025

Nimisha Priya, 37, was convicted in 2020 of murdering her Yemeni business partner Talal Abdo Mahdi in 2017. Her family, who launched an international campaign calling for her pardon, said the nurse had been assaulted and abused for years by Mahdi, which led her to commit the crime. Under Yemeni law, which is based on Islamic law, the victim’s family can pardon the convicted woman in exchange for “blood money,” which has prompted Priya’s family to raise funds to pay the required amount.