NEW DELHI: Yemen President Rashad al-Alimi has not ratified the death sentence given to Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, according to statement from Yemeni embassy on Monday. The embassy clarified this after a media report about the case.
The embassy stated that the Houthi militias have managed the entire proceedings, and consequently, Rashad Al-Alimi, who chairs Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, has not confirmed this ruling.
This contradicts the earlier reports that Alimi had given the nod for Kerala nurse‘s death sentence.
Read more: Yemen prez nod for Kerala nurse’s death sentence, kin clings to hope
Nimisha Priya, who originates from Kollengode in Kerala’s Palakkad district, was convicted of killing a Yemeni national in July 2017. Currently, the 37-year-old healthcare professional is imprisoned in Sana’a, Yemen’s capital, which remains under the authority of Iran-supported Houthis.
A trial court sentenced her to death in 2020, and Yemen’s Supreme Judicial Council upheld the sentence in November 2023.
However, the Indian government announced last week that it is monitoring the case developments closely. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday, “We are closely following the developments around the sentencing of Nimisha Priya. The government is extending all possible help in the matter.” Priya remains imprisoned in Sana’a.
The situation centres around Nimisha murdering the Yemeni national identified as Talal Abdo Mahdi by administering sedatives to him in an attempt to recover her passport, which he had confiscated.
The prosecution proved that Nimisha had killed Mahdi who was also her business partner. They had jointly operated a health clinic in Sana’a. After the murder, she dismembered his body and disposed of the parts in a tank. During the court proceedings, Nimisha stated that she committed the act in retaliation to the abuse and torture she endured from Mahdi, who had also taken possession of her passport.
