Aden (South24) 

The Specialized Criminal Court in Aden issued death sentences for seven individuals today, for their roles in the assassinations of mosque imams and security and military officers from the Southern Armed Forces.

According to the Southern forces, these convicts carried out multiple assassinations between 2015 and 2020 in the governorates of Aden and Lahj.

The convicted individuals are Al-Jashmi Ahmed Hussein, Emad Saleh Al-Khader, Hussam Najib Ahmed, Wael Mohammed Hussein Al-Jazzar, Ammar Shuei Al-Hawsali, Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed Youssef Qaddi, and Ali Mohammed Ali Al-Khudari.

The convicted during the trial (Credit: Deraa Aljanoob)

The court also sentenced three additional convicts to 10 years in prison, and another three to five years. Seven other convicts were deemed to have served sufficient time in prison.

In recent years, Aden has experienced an unprecedented wave of assassinations targeting dozens of military and security leaders and religious and social figures.

Many targets were Southern Transitional Council (STC) members and pro-independence advocates for South Yemen. While some attacks were claimed by ISIS and AQAP, others remain unclaimed or are linked to unknown parties.

Yemen’s political turmoil halted the work of Aden’s judiciary for years, delaying trials. Following the Presidential Leadership Council’s establishment in April 2022, multiple amendments were made to the justice system, allowing judicial and legal work to resume under the protection of STC forces.