Yemen’s Investigators Held, Jan. 27, 2026 January 2026, members of Yemen’s National Commission for the Investigation of Alleged Violations were detained for roughly three hours by UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces after inspecting an unofficial detention site on Socotra Island; two former detainees the commission had interviewed were also held.

Human Rights Watch and other monitors have previously documented secret detention centres run by UAE-backed forces in southern Yemen.

The incident renewed calls from UN experts and NGOs for unfettered access to all detention facilities, immediate release of arbitrarily detained individuals, independent investigations into allegations of torture and enforced disappearance, and accountability for those ordering or carrying out secret detentions.