[12/10/2017 03:43]

RIYADH-SABA

Minister of Information Muammar al-Eryani said that the Saleh-Houthi militias' is "still abducting 17 journalists, of which it referred 10 to the Terrorism Courts, denying them food and visits and subjecting many of them to brutal tortures" in jails.

In a meeting with the French Ambassador to Yemen Christiaan Testo in Riyadh on Thursday, he said that his ministry has taken upon itself the defense of Yemeni journalists and media bandits.

He added that press freedom has deteriorated as a result of the militias' storming and destroying of scores of media institutions, kidnapping and torturing of journalists and in some cases trying them in courts run by the radical militia and sentencing them to death.

He said that the militias are refusing any solution to the conflict as offered by the political leadership represented by President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

He said: "By the virtue of the National Dialogue Conference [2013-2014-] Yemen were starting a new stage in its history, to set up the unanimously agreed upon federal state, but Saleh-Houthi the militias launched an armed overthrow of the state, controlled all its institutions and looted its treasury to finance their war against the Yemeni people."

"The Government is striving now in three directions: restoration of the state and its' institutions; reconstruction and normalization of life; and fighting extremism and terrorism."

He said that media missions are welcome to operate in the government-held provinces and that his ministry will coordinate the visit of foreign media crews interest in travelling to Yemen.

The French Ambassador expressed his solidarity with the abducted journalists renewing his government's support to the Yemeni state and highlighting the importance of peace. He said that he would convey the story of Yemeni journalists' abuse to the French government.

---