Yemeni court upholds death sentence on two spies

The Yemen state security appeals court upheld the death sentence on two Yemenis who had been convicted of spying for Iran.

SANA'A // The Yemen state security appeals court upheld yesterday the death sentence on two Yemenis who had been convicted of spying for Iran. Abdel Karim Ali, 34, and Hani Ahmed Deen, 31, were found guilty in March 2009 of providing Iran information and documents related to the Yemeni military and the country's president between 1997 and 2008. The court in Sana'a upheld the acquittal of a third man in the trial, Eskandar Abdullah Yousef, 58.

The three men were accused of contacting Iranian intelligence agents and providing them with documents that contained information about the Yemeni defence and security and the country's economic conditions. They met with Iranian diplomats in Sana'a and provided them with information that harmed the political and diplomatic position of Yemen, the yesterday's court verdict said. The court said the diplomats paid the convicts tens of thousands of dollars for their services, which also included information on clashes between the Houthi Shiite rebels and government troops.

The two convicts rejected the appeals court verdict and said they would bring their case to the Supreme Court. They claimed during their initial trial that they were forced to admit to the charges and signed confessions after torture. In April, the state security primary court began the trial of four other Yemenis accused of spying for Iran for the past 16 years and supporting the Houthis. The four were accused of contacting Iran through its diplomats in Sana'a and receiving money for providing security, political and economic information to Tehran, according to the prosecutor.