Yemen's interior minister on Thursday (April 19th) ordered the "immediate arrest" of an Aden-based colonel, citing allegations of rape against African detainees that occurred under his watch, AFP reported.
Interior Minister Ahmed al-Misri "directed the relevant security services to immediately arrest Colonel Khalid al-Alwani, the former director of the African refugee centre, and refer him for investigation over human rights violations and cases of rape against African migrants", a statement on the ministry's website said.
Al-Alwani was suspended from his role overseeing the Buraika migrant detention centre in mid-March but continued to serve as a police chief for the Mualla district in the southern port of Aden.
The ministry said it had already pledged to carry out a full investigation and take legal action against those found guilty of abuses "regardless of whether they are members of the ministry".
Human rights Watch published a report on Wednesday saying Yemeni government employees had "tortured, raped, and executed" migrants and asylum seekers at the detention facility in Aden.
Migrants held at the facility -- in use since early 2017 -- were denied refugee protection and often deported en masse into rough seas, the watchdog said.
