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Will I be allowed to touch him? Will I get to hug him? How will he look at me? Will seeing him make me stronger, or will it completely shatter the last part of me that's still holding together?
These are the questions occupying Sanad's* thoughts as she approaches the prison in Yemen where her father has been held since early January. He was forcibly taken from his home amid the recent crackdowns on the Yemeni church.
"How will I carry on without my husband?"
Wife of imprisoned Yemeni Christian
As she arrives at the prison entrance, her body tenses, and her mind races. For several minutes, she waits for the guard to confirm she is allowed to enter. As she steps into the building, she can feel her heart beating. She clutches the stack of papers in her hands; all are prepared for signing so that she can finally see him.
But it isn't that easy.
Inside the prison, Sanad must wait again. She needs signatures from senior officials and their formal approval, a familiar drag of bureaucracy and procrastination. Her palms begin to sweat, and new questions run through her mind: What will he look like? Will he have shaved? Will he seem thinner? Doubt creeps in: Maybe it isn't a good idea to see him in this state. The guard's call to her snaps her out of her thoughts as she walks over to get her final paper stamped.
Sanad is led into a room lined with several window booths. Each one has what looks like a telephone on the right side. A guard stands by her, and then her father walks in with another guard. His face is familiar, but the marks of imprisonment are noticeable.
Her father sits on the other side of the glass window. She quickly picks up the phone and calls his name. He answers, and they calmly chat, fully aware that guards are listening to their conversation. The entire exchange lasts the allotted seven minutes. She watches as the guards escort her father away behind a grey wall.
"He looked sick, tired, unaware of what's going on," she shares later.
Sanad is one of several family members who have made recent visits to their incarcerated loved ones. Since the recent crackdown on Christians and the imprisonment of over 50 people across Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen, some prisoners were recently allowed phone calls and quick visits from family members.
Other family members echo Sanad's observations. They tell us that their loved ones look downcast and tired. Some were acting strange, and some had no ability to concentrate—probable signs of torture and harsh interrogation.
Today, many Yemeni wives, husbands, daughters, brothers and children are anxious and afraid. They're troubled by dark thoughts of the unknown future and the fate of their loved ones. "How will I carry on without my husband?" shares the wife of an imprisoned Christian.
"How will I take care of my young children when I must work to get money to buy our next meal?"
Open Doors local partners have remained in contact with family members and friends of those in prison. The phone calls are filled with tears and questioning thoughts: The future is unknown. Will this situation take weeks? Months? Years? So many questions without answers. But as the promises in Scripture show us, we can be assured that our God sees, our God knows, and our God will provide—and in His perfect timing, He will make a way out for His people.
As His worldwide Church, we can step into the lives of our hurting family in Yemen through prayer. Please pray with us for the church in Yemen:
*Names and minor details were altered for security reasons
