(1 May 2023 - Geneva, Switzerland) Defence for Children International (DCI) urgently appeals to the Yemeni government to stop the executions of juvenile offenders and to take all necessary measures to immediately suspend all pending executions imposed on persons for crimes committed before reaching the age of 18.

DCI was recently informed by DCI-Yemen ( “Democracy School”) and the Children’s Parliament about the case of Saleem Abo Sara'ah, a juvenile who was sentenced to death at the age of  17 – according to his birth certificate that was issued on 28 December 2001, and imprisoned in a military prison since 2011 following a riot at the central jail.

According to DCI-Yemen, age determination is a serious issue in the juvenile justice in Yemen, which has one of the lowest birth registration rates in the world, resulting in most juvenile offenders lacking official birth certificates documenting their age.