Houthi Levies Impoverish Yemeni Farmers

Farmers make compulsory donations of grape crops to the Houthis (social media)
Farmers make compulsory donations of grape crops to the Houthis (social media)
TT

Houthi Levies Impoverish Yemeni Farmers

Farmers make compulsory donations of grape crops to the Houthis (social media)
Farmers make compulsory donations of grape crops to the Houthis (social media)

Fruit farmers in Yemen’s Houthi-run areas are suffering the brunt of hiked oil prices and high maintenance rates. What is more is that the farmers are forced to sell their product with slim profit margins since power cuts and a limited number of available cool stores threaten spoiled crops.

Exacerbating the suffering of farmers, Houthis have continued to collect taxes in the name of supporting battlefronts and fighters.

Moreover, Yemeni farmers are complaining about the militias imposing compulsory donation campaigns for the fighters on the fronts, or as the militia media like to call them “Al-Murabitin.”

Houthi militias are known for holding a multitude of campaigns to collect funds under different slogans. Some of these campaigns are organized, while others are held randomly.

Last week, Houthis announced that farmers northeast of the capital Sanaa have agreed to send a fifth fruit convoy to fighters on frontlines in under a month.

Two weeks ago, Houthi militias announced that the people of the Saraf area had sent a grape convoy to fighters as well.

Last month, farmers near the capital were forced to give Houthis cargos of gifts, candy, nuts, and money.

Yemenis in the Bani Hashish district gave Houthis a cargo holding 15 million Yemeni rials, medicine and cattle.

As for the people of the city of Al Sharq and Maghrib Ans in Dhamar Governorate, south of Sanaa, the militias claimed that they had run two convoys of livestock, food, and medical supplies.

Besides forcing farmers to donate from each harvest, Houthis have set up a militia watchdog in agricultural areas.

Houthi supervisors closely monitor and follow up on planting operations until the moment of harvest production. When harvest is due, Houthi supervisors announce donation campaigns in which farmers are forced to provide quantities of their crops in support of the militia’s war effort.



Israel Sees More to Do on Lebanon Ceasefire

FILE PHOTO: A car drives past damaged buildings in Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon,  January 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Hankir/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A car drives past damaged buildings in Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, January 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Hankir/File Photo
TT

Israel Sees More to Do on Lebanon Ceasefire

FILE PHOTO: A car drives past damaged buildings in Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon,  January 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Hankir/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A car drives past damaged buildings in Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, January 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Hankir/File Photo

Israel said on Thursday the terms of a ceasefire with Hezbollah were not being implemented fast enough and there was more work to do, while the Iran-backed group urged pressure to ensure Israeli troops leave south Lebanon by Monday as set out in the deal.

The deal stipulates that Israeli troops withdraw from south Lebanon, Hezbollah remove fighters and weapons from the area and Lebanese troops deploy there - all within a 60-day timeframe which will conclude on Monday at 4 a.m (0200 GMT).

The deal, brokered by the United States and France, ended more than a year of hostilities triggered by the Gaza war. The fighting peaked with a major Israeli offensive that displaced more than 1.2 million people in Lebanon and left Hezbollah severely weakened.

"There have been positive movements where the Lebanese army and UNIFIL have taken the place of Hezbollah forces, as stipulated in the agreement," Israeli government spokesmen David Mencer told reporters, referring to UN peacekeepers in Lebanon.

"We've also made clear that these movements have not been fast enough, and there is much more work to do," he said, affirming that Israel wanted the agreement to continue.

Mencer did not directly respond to questions about whether Israel had requested an extension of the deal or say whether Israeli forces would remain in Lebanon after Monday's deadline.

Hezbollah said in a statement that there had been leaks talking about Israel postponing its withdrawal beyond the 60-day period, and that any breach of the agreement would be unacceptable.
The statement said that possibility required everyone, especially Lebanese political powers, to pile pressure on the states which sponsored the deal to ensure "the implementation of the full (Israeli) withdrawal and the deployment of the Lebanese army to the last inch of Lebanese territory and the return of the people to their villages quickly.”

Any delay beyond the 60 days would mark a blatant violation of the deal with which the Lebanese state would have to deal "through all means and methods guaranteed by international charters" to recover Lebanese land "from the occupation's clutches," Hezbollah said.