Yemen calls for end to Houthi practices against aid workers

Yemen's foreign minister on Wednesday (December 18th) called on the UN Security Council to take a firm stance against the violations committed by the Iran-backed Houthis (Ansarallah) against UN and other aid workers.

These include extortion attempts as well as attempts to impose new operating procedures aimed at diverting assistance to the militia's coffers, Mohammed al-Hadrami said after a meeting in Riyadh with UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths.

In a recent circular, the Houthis imposed restrictions on the activities of all international and UN organisations in Sanaa, preventing them from holding any training activities at their offices without first meeting certain conditions and obtaining prior approvals from the militia.

The Houthis are imposing new processes on the work of international organisations in areas under their control, "taking advantage of civilians' suffering and the need of UN organisations to deliver assistance, to impose their conditions", said economist Abdel Aziz Thabet.

Some organisations have submitted to the Houthis' demands in order to proceed with their work and deliver assistance to those in need, he told Al-Mashareq.

"If an organisation desires to hold any training for its staff, it has to obtain prior approval from the Houthis," he said. "This is a farce and manipulation of the needs of those targeted by assistance."

Restrictions on aid organisations

The Houthis have imposed three types of restrictions on international aid organisations, said Deputy Minister of Human Rights Nabil Abdul Hafeez.

The first requires them to conduct their work only under agreements with the Houthis, he told Al-Mashareq, adding that this allows the militia to control their activities.

Secondly, the Houthis have imposed on the organisations to hire a number of employees loyal to the militia "with the aim of penetrating these workplaces and controlling their operations", he said.

Additionally, the militia has sent threatening letters to local aid organisations that are not affiliated with it warning them of co-operating with international organisations or holding trainings with them, said Abdul Hafeez.

International organisations that tried to resist such instructions were blocked by the Houthis from conducting any activities without prior approval, he said.

Some organisations have recently revealed the Houthis were looting assistance meant for the poor and needy, "prompting the militia to close their headquarters", he said.

"The Houthis went as far as to prevent an official from one of those organisations from disembarking a plane at Sanaa International Airport and cancelled his contract," Abdul Hafeez said.

This places a greater responsibility on the UN to put an end to the Houthis' practices against aid organisations, he said.