Yemen Minister: Houthis Claiming Support for Gaza to Mask Repression, Looting

Asharq Al-Awsat

3 hours ago

Yemen's information minister accused the Iran-aligned Houthi militias of using their rocket launches toward Israel under the banner of 'supporting Gaza' as a propaganda tool to cover up repression and systematic looting of national resources.
In an official statement, Moammar al-Eryani said repeated Houthi claims of firing 'hypersonic' missiles at Israel had lost credibility at home and abroad, describing them as 'media stunts' aimed at distracting from internal crises and justifying the militants' abuses against civilians in areas under their control.
'What the Houthis call 'support operations for Gaza' are nothing but a grand lie — a political and media cover for material gain,' Eryani said, adding the militias had amassed more than $103 billion from taxes, levies and confiscated revenues since their 2014 coup, often under the guise of championing the Palestinian cause.
He accused the Houthis of imposing new levies on citizens and traders under names such as 'supporting the front' and 'supporting Gaza,' saying the money went to leaders' pockets and to fund their sectarian project, while millions of Yemenis faced hunger, poverty and unpaid salaries.
He said the Houthis were also forcing civil servants and students into indoctrination camps under the pretext of preparing to fight Israel and the United States, while in reality recruiting them for their domestic war effort.
The minister charged that the 'support for Gaza' slogan had become a tool to suppress dissent, curb freedoms and brand critics as obstructing the cause — a pretext for arrest or harassment. He described the Houthis as an Iranian proxy using the Palestinian issue to extend Tehran's influence after the waning role of Lebanon's Hezbollah.
'The Houthis' practices have only deepened Yemenis' suffering and prolonged the war. They do not support anyone but their sectarian project and Iran's agenda. Their claims of hypersonic missiles provoke only ridicule,' Eryani said.
Since November 2023, the Houthis have launched more than 200 missiles and drones toward Israel, killing one person when a drone exploded in a Tel Aviv apartment, but otherwise causing little damage.
Israel has retaliated with 13 waves of strikes that destroyed parts of Houthi-held Hodeidah port, energy and cement facilities, Sanaa airport and four civilian planes held there by the Houthis.
On Sunday, the Houthis said they had fired a new 'Palestine 2' hypersonic missile at Ben Gurion airport, a claim the Israeli military dismissed, saying the projectile was intercepted without damage. The announcement came hours after Israel struck a power station south of Sanaa.
While the Houthis insist their attacks are a 'religious and moral duty' toward Palestine, Yemen's legitimate government says the campaign serves only to justify repression and theft of resources, and to turn the country into a battlefield for Iran's regional ambitions.