Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, who was handed the death sentence in Yemen, will be executed on July 16, The Indian Express reported, citing a social worker.
Nimisha Priya, 37, who originally belongs to Kerala, was convicted of the murder of Yemeni citizen Talal Abdo Mehdi.
Samuel Jerome Baskaran, a social worker who is negotiating with government officials in Yemen and Talal's family, confirmed that a letter was issued by the public prosecutor to the jail authorities, The Indian Express reported.
Baskaran said the execution had been scheduled for July 16, adding that options remained open and that the Indian Government could intervene to save her life.
The Indian Government is in regular contact with the local authorities and Priya's family members, sources said, according to ANI. “We have been in regular touch with local authorities and her family members and rendered all possible assistance. We continue to closely follow the matter,” the sources said.
Also Read | Who is Nimisha Priya, Indian nurse on death row in Yemen?
Baskaran, who will leave for Yemen soon to resume negotiations, said an offer had been extended to Talal's family during their last meeting, to which they did not respond.
{{/usCountry}}Baskaran, who will leave for Yemen soon to resume negotiations, said an offer had been extended to Talal's family during their last meeting, to which they did not respond.
{{/usCountry}}Priya had partnered with Talal to open a clinic, which was a legal requirement for foreign nationals in Yemen. She allegedly sedated Talal in order to retrieve her passport, which he had seized. However, the Yemeni citizen died from the overdose of the drugs. Priya and another Yemeni national Hanan, her colleague, then allegedly dismembered and disposed of Talal's body in a water tank.
Earlier this year, the Yemeni embassy had said the case had largely been handled by the Houthi militia, news agency PTI reported.
Priya, who hails from Kerala's Palakkad district, is currently lodged in a jail in the country's capital city of Sana'a, which is also under Houthi control. A trial court found her guilty of Talal's murder in July 2017.
Following this, Yemen's supreme judicial council upheld the decision and sentenced her to death in 2024.
Priya had moved to Sana'a in 2011 to work as a nurse there. Her husband and daughter had to return to India in 2014 due to financial challenges. The conflict in Yemen prevented them from reuniting, with Priya remaining there.