Indian Nurse Nimisha Priya Faces Execution in Yemen on July 16, Report Says
Indian national Nimisha Priya, a nurse sentenced to death in Yemen for the 2017 murder of Yemeni citizen Talal Abdo Mehdi, is scheduled for execution on July 16, according to a report by The Indian Express citing a social worker involved in negotiations.
Priya, 37, originally from Kerala’s Palakkad district, was convicted of murdering Talal, her business partner in a Sana’a clinic. Foreign nationals in Yemen require a local partner to operate businesses legally. The conviction stemmed from allegations that Priya sedated Talal to retrieve her passport, which he had seized. Talal died from an overdose of the sedatives. Priya and her Yemeni colleague, Hanan, were then accused of dismembering his body and disposing of it in a water tank.
Samuel Jerome Baskaran, a social worker negotiating with Yemeni officials and Talal’s family, confirmed to The Indian Express that the public prosecutor issued a letter to jail authorities setting the execution date for July 16. Baskaran emphasized that options remain open, including potential intervention by the Indian government to save Priya’s life.
Baskaran, who is preparing to return to Yemen for further talks, stated that an offer was made to Talal’s family during their last meeting, but they have yet to respond. The case has been complicated by the political situation; earlier this year, the Yemeni embassy noted the case was largely handled by the Houthi militia, as reported by news agency PTI. Priya is currently imprisoned in Sana’a, the capital city under Houthi control.
After a trial court found Priya guilty in July 2017, Yemen’s supreme judicial council upheld the decision and formally sentenced her to death in 2024. Yemen’s President Rashad al-Alimi subsequently approved the death sentence.
Priya moved to Sana’a for work in 2011. Her husband and daughter returned to India in 2014 due to financial difficulties. The ensuing conflict in Yemen prevented her from leaving and reuniting with her family.