The BBC has been given access to detention facilities on former United Arab Emirates military bases in Yemen, confirming long-standing allegations of a network of secret prisons run by the UAE and forces allied to it in Yemen's decade-long civil war.
One former detainee told the BBC he had been beaten and sexually abused at one of these sites. Cells at two bases in southern Yemen included shipping containers marked with names and dates of detainees.
The UAE has previously denied similar allegations, but the end of its coalition with Yemeni government forces has raised new scrutiny over its actions.
Families of detainees have raised concerns about the conditions and treatment their relatives endure, with some claiming they have gone years without hearing from loved ones. A mother recounted that her son, an athlete, was detained as a teenager and subjected to torture over nine years.
Human rights groups have documented abuses since the outset of the Yemeni conflict, yet access to the facilities has been limited until now. The UN highlights such practices are indicative of a broader crisis in the region.
The Yemeni government is now pledging to close all illegal prisons and ensure detainees are moved under the formal justice system, but skepticism remains about the future of these individuals and the potential for continued abuses.
