Those found guilty of terrorism in the Yemen are blind-folded with hands tied behind their back, made to kneel on the ground and then killed by a single pistol shot to the back of the neck. It would a barbaric end to the lives of five young men from ordinary homes in provincial British cities. This weekend the five are in separate cells inside Aden's security headquarters, pondering their fate.
Conditions are basic in the vast complex where even the guards sleep on straw.
They complain of faulty toilets, failing light-bulbs and mosquitos. Each bemoaned the conditions when visited earlier this week by David Pearce, the deputy ambassador and consul general. Pearce said they appeared relaxed and showed no outward sign of physical abuse, though their lawyers have say one has been slapped and another suspended and the soles of his feet beaten. The muddle over whether the men have been tortured reflects the general mystery surrounding them. Last week a Yemeni newspaper printed pictures of the arms cache which is said to have been seized with them.