Yemen: Potential punishment, including execution, faced by individuals who have returned to Yemen from Saudi Arabia after having made a refugee claim in Saudi Arabia
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 20 May 2003 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | YEM41423.E |
| Reference | 4 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Yemen: Potential punishment, including execution, faced by individuals who have returned to Yemen from Saudi Arabia after having made a refugee claim in Saudi Arabia, 20 May 2003, YEM41423.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3f7d4e3c15.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Comments | Corrected Feb 06 |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
No information on potential punishment or prosecution faced by individuals who have returned to Yemen from Saudi Arabia after having made a refugee claim in Saudi Arabia could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
However, during the 1994 civil war opposing northern against southern Yemenis, President Ali Abdallah Salih proclaimed a general amnesty (U.S. Nov. 1995; DevNews Media Center 2003) that would apply to everyone, except for 16 specific persons (U.S. Nov. 1995). Most of the thousands of southern leaders and military in exile returned to Yemen following the amnesty announcement (ibid.). An Arabic News.com report stated that Yemeni journalists living in Damascus and Cairo since 1994 were able to return to Yemen in 2001 under the 1994 amnesty, and an unspecified number of Yemeni military men who had sought refugee status in Syria after the conflict were about to do so (9 Oct. 2001).
As of 1 April 2003, Saudi Arabia was not among the states party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol (UNHCR 1 Apr. 2003).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
ArabicNews.com. 9 October 2001. "Yemeni Refugees Return Back to Their Country."
DevNews Media Center. 2003. "Country in the News: Yemen".
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). 1 April 2003. "State Parties to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol."
United States (US). November 1995. United States Department of State. "Yemen: Background Notes."
Additional Sources Consulted
IRB databases
LEXIS/NEXIS
UNHCR could not provide the requested information within time constraints.
Internet sites, including
Amnesty International. Search engine facility
Country Reports 2002
European Country of Origin Information Network (ECOI). Search engine facility
Human Rights Watch (HRW). Search engine facility
UNHCR. Search engine facility
United States Committee for Refugees (USCR). Search engine facility
World News Connection (WNC). Search engine facility
Yemen Gateway. Search engine facility
Yemen Times. Search engine facility