The Shabwa Appeals Court has referred the case of the murder of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Bani to the military court, citing a lack of jurisdiction. This decision comes after the initial court rejected a similar request. rights sources in Shabwa Governorate (southeastern Yemen) reported the transfer on Wednesday, September 4, 2024. The case involves the alleged killing of Sheikh Al-Bani by members of the Shabwa Defense Forces, who shot him after he delivered his Eid al-Fitr sermon in the Bayhan district.

Sources told "Barran Press that the Appeals Court in Ataq began the first appeal hearings on July 25, 2024. The third hearing, held on September 4, saw the presiding judge, Arif Amr Al-Nassi, rule in favor of the military court referral, despite objections from the victim's family lawyer.

The lawyer, Abdulslam Al-Subaihi, argued that the initial court had already ruled the case to be within the jurisdiction of civilian courts, citing the fact that the Shabwa Defense Forces do not fall under the Ministry of Defense or Interior. He described the Appeals Court's decision as "far from justice."

The decision to transfer the case comes despite a previous verdict by the Ataq Primary Court on March 10, 2023, which convicted 13 soldiers of the Shabwa Defense Forces for the killing. The court sentenced one of the defendants to death and the remaining 12 to seven years in prison. Seven of the convicted soldiers remain at large.

Sheikh Al-Bani, the director of the Bayhan Health Office and a leader in the Islah Party in Shabwa, was killed on April 22, 2023, by soldiers from the Shabwa Defense Forces shortly after delivering his Eid al-Fitr sermon.