A/HRC/42/CRP.1 418. In the course of its investigations, the Group received allegations that sexual violence had been used as a form of torture against four detainees, including at the Political Security detention centre. Allegations received by the Group included one victim having his penis tied to a wire for five days,646 and another being threatened with rape, including with an object.647 The Group of Experts also received various reports of forced nudity in front of other detainees and guards.648 The Group received allegations that young boys were being detained, either because of their alleged association with opposition parties, or in order to extract information or put pressure on a family member to “surrender” to the de facto authorities. In one such case, the Group received information 649 that one of these boys, detained in the Political Security detention centre, had been subjected to torture, including sexual assault, namely beatings on his genitals, forced nudity, and threats of rape.650 Inhuman detention conditions “I was allowed to go out to the toilet only once in twenty-four hours. The water I used to drink was not transparent. I was not allowed to shower. The place was dark. The kitchen where I was detained very cold, I had kidney and lung infections. They used to leave me for days without food and to threaten to kill me” Former detainee in the Political Security detention centre 419. Inhuman detention conditions were widely reported in all detention centres involving cases investigated by the Group of Experts, especially at the Political Security detention centre in Sana’a. Sources including former detainees described overcrowding – up to 37 detainees in one room where each detainee would get the equivalent of “one tile” to sleep on. They further described a pervasive lack of food, clean water, natural light, ventilation, and access to toilets. They were also denied access to books, news, and pens. In 2017, OHCHR reported on 150 detention facilities run by the de facto authorities that had been monitored since March 2015, stating that “conditions of detention had notably deteriorated…all exacerbated by the conflict.” 651 A former detainee informed the Group that in the Political Security detention centre there was a cell of 4 by 5 meters with 20 people, with no window, no light, which forced detainees to work out a sleeping schedule.652 The use of secret detention facilities presented an additional concern with regard to detention conditions, as they were not usually designed for detention purposes. The appalling living conditions detainees described made clear the source of their daily misery. In cases where torture did not occur, detainees still described to the Group detention conditions that constituted ill-treatment.653 Limited or lack of access to family visits “Many times, I was dragged and threatened in front of my family that they would forbid my family visit because I was late and my two minute-visit time was already over. We were beaten with electric sticks in front of the family during the visit” Testimony from a former detainee in political security 420. Relatives of detainees reported to the Group of Experts that they were regularly denied family visits to the Political Security detention centre in Sana’a. 654 In some cases, they expressed fears that their visits were being denied because their relative was being subjected to torture. In one case, the prosecutor requested the head of the Political Security 646 Confidential Sources on File. Confidential Sources on File. 648 Confidential Sources on File. 649 Confidential Sources on File. 650 For further details, see chapter on Impact of the armed conflict on children, section on Violations of the rights to liberty and security of person and protection from violence. 651 UN Human Rights Yemen Report 2017 - A/HRC/36/33, p13. 652 Confidential Sources on File. 653 Confidential Sources on File. 654 Confidential Sources on File. 647 103