Parents of Houthi-held journalists start hunger strike

By Ahmed Ghanem Selouma

SANAA (AA) – The parents of 10 journalists held by Yemen’s Shia Houthi militant group since June of last year began a hunger strike Tuesday to protest their children’s ongoing detention.

In a joint statement, they said they had not been allowed to visit their children, who, they alleged, had been subject to torture and mistreatment at the hands of the militant group.

They vowed to maintain their hunger strike until the detained reporters were released.

The distraught parents also called on the Yemeni authorities -- and the members of a Yemeni government delegation currently attending peace talks in Kuwait -- to take the necessary steps to recover their children.

Yemen has been racked by chaos since late 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran capital Sanaa and other parts of the country.