The Houthi militia carried out field campaigns targeting sports academies, health clubs, and entertainment centers in Sanaa as part of the group's efforts to collect royalties and impose sectarian activities.
Informed sources in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat that the group's goal is to ban children, young men, and athletes from joining any events, activities, or sports competitions, forcing them to join its ranks.
The abuse is part of efforts to launch new campaigns to attract and recruit children and youth between the ages of 9 and 25 who have joined sports academies, health clubs, or entertainment centers.
Ahead of this, the group launched campaigns targeting workers in the sector.
The group's activists stressed the need to establish a so-called "specialized mechanism and departments" by the ministries of education and sports of the unrecognized coup government to assume direct supervision over the activities held by sports academies, clubs, and entertainment centers.
They also want to force them to organize activities and competitions proposed by the two Houthi ministries.
In turn, the Ministry of Youth and Sports in the unrecognized coup government held a meeting in Sanaa to organize field visits to academies, centers, health clubs, and gaming centers.
The sources confirmed that the Houthi Minister of Youth, Mohammad al-Muayyidi, participated in the field committees in their campaigns.
Directors of academies and owners of clubs and centers in Sanaa complained to Asharq Al-Awsat about the group's sudden and unjustified targeting under unfounded allegations.
A.M., a director of a sports academy in Sanaa, said he was targeted a few days ago by a Houthi campaign asking about the academy and its employees, with lists of names of its members.
Immediately upon its arrival at the academy's headquarters, the committee stopped all sports activities, especially those related to football.
The academy director tried to find out the reasons for this action, but the Houthi supervisors told him that the suspension was temporary until a comprehensive program of activities was prepared for academies officials and club owners to implement.
He indicated the recent "sectarianism" campaign after the remarkable improvement witnessed in Sanaa by establishing academies specialized in various sports, specifically football.
- The decline of the sports sector
Sports sources in Sanaa expressed their regret at escalating the group's violations against sports facilities in the areas under its control.
They told Asharq Al-Awsat that the new abuse comes in light of the significant deterioration of the sports sector, including clubs subjected to systematic targeting years ago.
For their part, athletes in Sanaa denounced the practices carried out by the group, especially against sports academies.
They described the academies as one of the critical projects that work to refine emerging talents and develop and direct their abilities to create a talented sports generation.
The Houthi group had previously prevented youth and sports offices in the areas under its control from holding any sports activities unless they referred to its committees and provided detailed information on the type of sports activity, the time and place of its organization, and a list of names of persons in charge and participating players.
Several local reports accused the coup leaders of the deliberate suspension of various sports and activities, seeking to attract thousands of athletes to recruit them.
