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Houthi Network Loots Humanitarian Aid Sent to Devastated Yemenis

Flour is loaded at Hodeidah port. (AFP)
Flour is loaded at Hodeidah port. (AFP)
    Aden - Waddah al-Jalil
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Houthi Network Loots Humanitarian Aid Sent to Devastated Yemenis

Flour is loaded at Hodeidah port. (AFP)
Flour is loaded at Hodeidah port. (AFP)

The Iran-backed Houthi militias have set new conditions for international humanitarian aid agencies and UN programs operating in Yemeni areas under their control, forcing the relief organizations to give up the personal data of aid beneficiaries.

In the meantime, Asharq Al-Awsat uncovered documents and information from judiciary sources showing how the Houthis have established an entire network dedicated to looting humanitarian aid sent to impoverished Yemenis and redirecting it to serve and benefit the group’s militiamen.

According to public prosecution records in Sanaa, the Houthis have manipulated, seized, and sold relief aid destined to Yemenis. The donations, including aid from the World Food Program (WFP), were then sold to merchants loyal to the Houthis.

In a 2018 prosecution report prepared by militia authorities in Sanaa, Houthi inspectors raided the warehouses of a merchant called Hamid Hussein al-Kabous.

Initially, the group was seeking to seize banned pesticides and toxic material, but instead grabbed 131 wheat sacks, 95 tin cans of green peas, each tin weighing 50 kg, and 544 packages of WFP aid. WFP labels, clearly prohibiting the selling or importing of the aid, are slapped on all the seized products.

The Houthis then covered up their findings with another report that accused al-Kabous’ brother, Taha, of possessing WFP aid. The other report mentioned nothing of the pesticides found stored next to food aid.

A judicial source in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat that these two reports reveal three crimes: manipulating aid, smuggling toxic pesticides, and storing pesticides next to foodstuffs.

Moreover, the Houthis have put restrictions on delivery and distribution of aid to some 19 million Yemeni living in areas under their control.

The militias are demanding that the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) apply for a permit from their authorities before resuming work in Houthi-run parts of Yemen.

By applying to the permit, the international body would be required to present all the information pertaining to beneficiaries in Yemen.

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Sudan’s Paramilitary Unleashes Drones on Key Targets in Port Sudan

Smoke billows after a drone strike on the port of Port Sudan on May 6, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after a drone strike on the port of Port Sudan on May 6, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Sudan’s Paramilitary Unleashes Drones on Key Targets in Port Sudan

Smoke billows after a drone strike on the port of Port Sudan on May 6, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after a drone strike on the port of Port Sudan on May 6, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Sudan’s paramilitary unleashed drones on the Red Sea city of Port Sudan early Tuesday, hitting key targets there, including the airport, the port and a hotel, military officials said. The barrage was the second such attack this week on a city that had been a hub for people fleeing Sudan's two-year war.

There was no immediate word on casualties or the extent of damage. Local media reported loud sounds of explosions and fires at the port and the airport. Footage circulating online showed thick smoke rising over the area.

The attack on Port Sudan, which also serves as an interim seat for Sudan's military-allied government, underscores that after two years of fighting, the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are still capable of threatening each other’s territory.

The RSF drones struck early in the morning, said two Sudanese military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Abdel-Rahman al-Nour, a Port Sudan resident, said he woke up to strong explosions, and saw fires and plumes of black smoke rising over the port. Msha’ashir Ahmed, a local journalist living in Port Sudan, said fires were still burning late Tuesday morning in the southern vicinity of the maritime port.

The RSF did not release any statements on the attack. On Sunday, the paramilitary force struck Port Sudan for the first time in the war, disrupting air traffic in the city’s airport, which has been the main entry point for the county in the last two years.

A military ammunition warehouse in the Othman Daqna airbase in the city was also hit, setting off a fire that burned for two days.

When the fighting in Sudan broke out, the focus of the battles initially was the country's capital, Khartoum, which turned into a war zone. Within weeks, Port Sudan, about 800 kilometers (500 miles) to the east of Khartoum, turned into a safe haven for the displaced and those fleeing the war. Many aid missions and UN agencies moved their offices there.

The attacks on Port Sudan are also seen as retaliation after the Sudanese military earlier this month struck the Nyala airport in South Darfur, which the paramilitary RSF has turned into a base and where it gets shipments of arms, including drones.