Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, convicted of murdering Yemeni national Talal Abdo Mehdi, is scheduled to be executed on July 16.
A report by Indian Express, quoting Samuel Jerome Baskaran, a social worker actively engaged in last-minute negotiations in Yemen, confirmed the development.
Baskaran, as per the report, confirmed that Yemen’s public prosecutor has issued formal instructions to prison authorities regarding the execution. “The date has been fixed, but options are still open. The Indian government can step in to help save her life,” he said. He also noted that although an offer for a pardon had been presented to Talal’s family during a previous meeting, no response has been received. Baskaran is currently traveling to Yemen to continue discussions.
According to the repeot quoting sources, Nimisha was convicted in June 2018 and sentenced to death by a Yemeni court. “We have been consistently monitoring the case, maintaining contact with local authorities and her family, and offering all possible support,” officials said.
Nimisha Priya, a 38-year-old nurse from Kerala, had been working in Yemen for several years before her arrest in 2017. Reports suggest she endured mental, physical, and financial abuse while operating a clinic with Talal’s support, which eventually led to his murder. A Yemeni trial court sentenced her to death, a verdict upheld by the country’s Supreme Court and later ratified by President Rashad al-Alimi last year. The execution order has been pending with the prosecutor’s office since January 2025.
Her mother, Prema Kumari, a domestic worker from Kochi, has been in Yemen for over a year, tirelessly advocating for her daughter. In December last year, she moved the Delhi High Court to lift travel restrictions and was subsequently able to visit her daughter in prison in Sanaa.
Despite diplomatic efforts and appeals from human rights groups, Nimisha’s fate now largely depends on securing a pardon from the victim’s family — a possibility that remains uncertain with less than a week to go.
