CAIRO: Yemen ‘s Houthi rebels released actor and model Intisar Al-Hammadi after nearly five years in prison over charges of committing an indecent act and drug possession in a case rights groups said was ” marred with irregularities and abuse,” her lawyer said Sunday.
Al-Hammadi was detained in the capital Sanaa in February 2021 and sentenced to five years in prison after a Houthi-run court convicted her of committing an indecent act and having drugs in her possession. Her detention and trial showcased the Houthi repression of women and dissent in areas under their control in war-torn Yemen.
Lawyer Khalid Al-Kamal said Al-Hammadi was released on Saturday after she spent nearly five years in the Central Prison in Sanaa.
An online statement signed by dozens of public figures in Yemen welcomed her release and called on the Houthis to provide health care for Al-Hammadi.
Al-Hammadi, 25, was arrested along with three other women. Al-Hammadi and another woman, Yousra Al-Nashri, were sentenced to five years, while the two other women received one and three years in prison.
