Yemeni foreign minister: Foreign military intervention violates sovereignty, displaces 250,000

Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Dr. Afrah Al-Zouba, said that security agencies have identified 21 foreign experts working directly with the Houthi militia, including 14 from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and 7 from Lebanon’s Hezbollah. She noted that these individuals are part of a wider group of experts supporting the militia’s military operations and terrorist attacks.

According to the Saba news agency, her remarks came during a press meeting in Paris with representatives of several international media outlets and news agencies, where Al-Zouba reviewed the latest developments in Yemen, the escalation by the Houthis, and the militia’s recruitment of foreign operatives for its recent attacks.

The Yemeni foreign minister stressed that the Houthis’ reliance on members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah for their recent operations reveals the extent of their military decision-making being dictated from abroad, and their use of Yemeni territory to serve the Iranian regime’s agenda at the expense of Yemeni lives and security.

She pointed out that the involvement of these foreign elements in planning, managing operations, and building the militia’s military capabilities has contributed to increased attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, resulting in deaths and forced displacement, and has strengthened the Houthis’ ability to threaten neighboring countries and international shipping.

Al-Zouba emphasized that such blatant military interventions constitute a flagrant violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and international law. She confirmed that more than a quarter of a million people have been displaced during the latest round of escalation, and warned that the continued flow of weapons, technology, and experts to the militia will make future deterrence efforts even more costly.

The minister also highlighted the ongoing targeting of civilians, civilian sites, and infrastructure by the militia, as well as the ongoing siege of Taiz, which has led to catastrophic humanitarian consequences, especially for women, children, and those suffering from serious and chronic illnesses.

She explained that the closure of health facilities and the prevention of medicine deliveries, along with the militia’s refusal to open safe corridors for civilians and patients to leave besieged areas, is worsening the suffering of the population and causing deaths among patients deprived of medical care.

Al-Zouba also addressed the grave human rights violations committed by the militia, foremost among them the recruitment of children and the widespread, indiscriminate planting of anti-personnel mines. She warned that the threat posed by these practices now surpasses, in both means and scope, the dangers of terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and Daesh.

She called on the international community and the UN Security Council to build consensus for designating the Houthi militia as a global terrorist organization, to pursue its networks and incitement platforms, and to take firm action to halt the flow of weapons and experts to the group.

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