(New York, N.Y.) — Today, on the ninth anniversary of the Houthis taking control of Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) published the first report in a series exploring the activities of the Iranian-backed Shiite Muslim armed religious and political movement. This report, The Houthis and U.S.-Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, examines how the Houthis have facilitated financial support to Hezbollah and Hamas, and explores the extent to which Houthi government officials, corporations, and private individuals have been similarly involved.
To read the CEP report, The Houthis and U.S.-Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, please click here.
In 2019, the Houthi-run Radio Sam FM launched a grassroots fundraiser to support Hezbollah, using the Yemen Post banking system—a governmental body overseen by Minister Misfer Abdullah al-Numeir—to collect hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars to be gifted to Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. In 2021, the Houthis also solicited and collected $4 million from Yemeni donors to support “Palestinian resistance” organizations—including terrorist groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
Nevertheless, Houthi leaders have escaped U.S. sanctions.
Under Executive Order 13224, which “authorizes the U.S. government to block the assets of individuals and entities that provide support, services, or assistance to, or otherwise associate with, terrorists and terrorist organizations designated under the Order,” Houthi leaders should be held accountable.
Such action would also constrain Yemeni entities that have aided and abetted these Houthi-directed activities. As detailed in the report, this includes Al-Masirah, the Houthis’ premier media outlet; Houthi-run Radio Sam FM; Houthi Minister of Telecommunication and Information Technology Misfer Al-Numeir; Yemen Post; and Yemeni telecom corporation Yemen Mobile, a leader in the Yemeni telecommunications industry, which the United Nations described as “a major source of revenue for the Houthi authorities” and is estimated to be providing the group at least tens of millions of dollars annually—a significant amount given Yemen’s GDP per capita is below $700.
Even though sums provided by the Houthi movement to Hezbollah and Hamas may seem minor in comparison to the groups’ total operating budget, the series of fundraising campaigns signify increased collaboration among the terrorist groups.
To read the CEP report, The Houthis and U.S.-Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, please click here.
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