Houthis Privatize Public Schools for Financial Gain

A Yemeni boy carries a weapon as tribesmen loyal to the Houthis attend a gathering in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020. (AP)
A Yemeni boy carries a weapon as tribesmen loyal to the Houthis attend a gathering in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020. (AP)
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Houthis Privatize Public Schools for Financial Gain

A Yemeni boy carries a weapon as tribesmen loyal to the Houthis attend a gathering in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020. (AP)
A Yemeni boy carries a weapon as tribesmen loyal to the Houthis attend a gathering in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020. (AP)

Houthi militias have launched a campaign to privatize public schools in areas under their control. The move will affect hundreds of schools in Sanaa and other governorates held by the Iran-backed militia.

The move matches other Houthi efforts focused on raising funds and promoting their racist ideology

It also drew massive public rage from Yemenis who said that the privatization of public schools is a violation of the law and an attack against the right to free education.

In recent days, the Houthis also imposed a host of arbitrary restrictions against private schools in their territory. They also forced some schools named after member states of the Arab Coalition to rebrand.

Sources based in Sanaa revealed that among the privatized schools in the capital was the all-girl Balqis School. It was not only denationalized, but also made into an all-boy institution.

Pupils at Balqis School will now have to pay 65,000 Yemeni rials for each level between grade one and grade six. The registration fees for grades seven through nine stand at a staggering 85,000 Yemeni rials.

High school goers will need to pay 95,000 Yemeni rials to enroll.

Parents of pupils in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat that the privatization of free education is another crime to be added to a long list of violations committed by the Iran-backed group against the education sector.

They also stressed that the Houthi move is illegal.

“Houthis seek to exploit public schools after privatizing them for material enrichment at the expense of the suffering of students and families,” Sanaa-based teachers and academics told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Houthis ramped up their harsh crusade against Yemen’s educational and societal freedoms in August, including changing school curriculums to glorify Imam Al-Hadi Yahya, the father of the country’s Imamate which ruled north Yemen from 897 until 1962,” Inside Arabia reported on the Houthi violations against the education sector.



Damascus Disarms Regime Loyalist Sleeper Cells in Deir Ezzor

Weapons that were seized in the campaign. (Deir Ezzor Governorate)
Weapons that were seized in the campaign. (Deir Ezzor Governorate)
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Damascus Disarms Regime Loyalist Sleeper Cells in Deir Ezzor

Weapons that were seized in the campaign. (Deir Ezzor Governorate)
Weapons that were seized in the campaign. (Deir Ezzor Governorate)

The internal security command in Syria’s eastern Deir Ezzor province has banned remnants of the former regime from owning or carrying weapons, following the completion of the initial phases of a sweeping security crackdown.

The campaign, which focused on the city of al-Mayadeen near the Iraqi border, led to the arrest of dozens of wanted individuals and the seizure of large quantities of weapons and ammunition.

Col. Derrar al-Shamlan, head of internal security in the province, said 85% of the operation had been completed and described it as a major effort to dismantle “sources of chaos and threats to public safety.”

“A firm decision has been issued to prohibit the possession or ownership of all types of weapons by remnants of the ousted regime and their collaborators, due to the threat they pose to community security and stability,” Shamlan said.

He added that the ban followed confirmed reports that such weapons had been used in homicides and acts of intimidation. Shamlan also announced the completion of the second and third phases of the campaign, with plans to extend operations to the rest of Deir Ezzor province.

Security forces also launched a weapons crackdown on areas once under Iranian influence during the era of the former regime, security sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The operation comes amid growing concerns that Iran could activate loyalist sleeper cells in Syria to stage attacks, as tensions escalate between Tehran and Tel Aviv. Analysts say such moves may be aimed at widening the conflict and easing pressure on Iran from Israeli airstrikes.

According to security officials, the campaign focused on disarming groups in the city of al-Mayadeen. Authorities exercised extreme caution during the raids, given the tribal nature of the region.

The operation was conducted in coordination with the Ministry of Defense, whose forces sealed off the area and imposed a curfew.

Officials emphasized that cooperation with local residents and tribal leaders was a priority. The Syrian leadership, the sources said, is relying on tribal elders to help restore and maintain security across the country’s east.

Dozens of people have been arrested in the sweeping campaign in Deir Ezzor, with local sources estimating the number of detainees at more than 70. The charges include illegal weapons possession, drug trafficking, smuggling, murder, and failure to comply with reconciliation procedures, residents told Asharq Al-Awsat.

According to the sources, over a third of those detained were linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated militias. Many of them, they said, were well-known in the area and had long been a source of fear and unrest for local communities.

“There is widespread frustration that the government delayed cracking down on these individuals,” one source said, noting that some of those arrested had joined the public security apparatus, only to resume their previous illegal activities.