A Welsh man who has spent five years in a Yemen jail for having a British passport has been freed and is set to be reunited with his family. Luke Symons was accused of being a spy when he was found with a British passport in Yemen.
Luke, from Cardiff, had travelled across the Middle East when he was 20 and met his now-wife in Yemen. Now aged 30, the former barber had been held by the Houthi authorities in the capital Sanaa ever since his arrest at a security checkpoint in the southwestern city of Ta’iz on April 4, 2017. His family claim he had been mistreated in prison.
On Sunday UK Government foreign secretary Liz Truss said: "Delighted that Luke Symons, who was unlawfully detained, without charge or trial since 2017 in Yemen by the Houthis, has been released and will shortly be reunited with his family. I pay tribute to our Omani and Saudi partners and our team for securing his release."
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She added that during his time in jail he was allegedly "mistreated, in solitary confinement" and refused visits by his family. The Foreign Office said that he was being flown to Muscat in Oman and will "soon be reunited with his family in the UK".
Luke has been reunited with his wife and son, who was only a few months old at the time he was detained,. His family say that in the early periods of his confinement he was tortured to make him “confess” to being a spy. His wife said she was concerned for his welfare after visiting him in jail earlier this year.
Speaking to WalesOnline in 2019 Luke's grandfather Robert Cummings said the family had been "destroyed" by his imprisonment thousands of miles away in Yemen. "It's killed our family," he said. "We can't sit down for a meal without mentioning Luke, we can't have a cup of tea without Luke coming up."
War broke out in Yemen in 2015 between the Yemeni Government and the Houthi armed movement who imprisoned Luke. British sales of arms to Saudi Arabia, who are supporters of the Yemeni Government, meant there has been suspicion of British citizens in the country.
Cardiff West MP Kevin Brennan, who has supported the family since Luke was imprisoned and campaigned for his release over the last five years, said that ceasefire in the country and given them the opportunity to campaign further for his release. He said: "I have spoken to Luke's grandfather and the family are absolutely over the moon and very relieved. It hard to believe that he was 25 when he was first detained and now he is 30. A huge amount of work has gone on behind the scenes for his release to happen but it was still nerve-wracking as he was nearly released two years ago and it all fell apart."
The Labour MP for Cardiff West also tweeted: "This is terrific news – after five years finally my constituent Luke Symons has been released from captivity. Thanks to all at the FCDO and most of all to Luke’s family for their tireless campaigning." Mr Brennan said the plan was for Mr Symons to return home to Cardiff after he underwent medical tests.
Eilidh Macpherson, Amnesty International UK’s Individuals at Risk Campaign Manager, said: “It is wonderful news and a huge relief that Luke Symons has finally been released from jail in Yemen after five years locked up in torturous conditions.
“Symons was an innocent victim of the conflict in Yemen and should never have been detained in the first place. The unbearable conditions he faced - including solitary confinement - were taking a terrible toll on Luke’s well-being, with his mental and physical health suffering.
“Luke’s family and his MP Kevin Brennan have been relentless in their campaigning for his release, and Amnesty joined them in calling for the UK government to make his case a priority. We eagerly anticipate Luke finally being reunited with his family and able to travel back to Cardiff.”
