UN Experts Say Weapons Reaching Houthis Similar to Iran’s

Arab World

February 2nd, 9:33am

Aden - Ali Rabee

Colonel Turki al-Maliki, reviewing one of the Houthi missiles that were previously downed by the Arab Coalition and showing signs that their parts correspond to Iranian missiles, SPA

UN experts said that Yemen’s Houthi insurgents are receiving parts for drones and weapons, some with technical characteristics similar to arms manufactured in Iran, in potential violation of an arms embargo. Experts, in a report to the Security Council, said that the main smuggling route for both the commercially available drone parts and weapons “seems to run overland from Oman and the southern coast of Yemen, through territory controlled by the government of Yemen, towards Sanaa”, the country’s capital, which is controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi militia. The panel's report, which obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, said the seizure on November 25 of a dhow in the Arabian Sea carrying anti-tank missiles indicated that sea transport also “continues to play a role” in the arms shipments. Yemen's Houthis have new drones that resemble those used in the attack on Saudi Aramco facilities, which has been blamed on Iran. In the Houthi-controlled north, the experts said, the rebels continued to consolidate their political and military control, using their “pervasive intelligence services” and brutally suppressing tribal opposition and political dissent. The panel said it identified a network targeting women who oppose the Houthis, including through the use of sexual violence. In 11 cases, the experts said they documented the arrest, detention, beating, torture and sexual abuse of women “because of their political affiliations or participation in political activities or public protests”. “These women were threatened with charges of prostitution or organized crime if they persisted in activities against the Houthis,” the panel said. During most of 2019, the panel said, the Houthis continued and intensified aerial attacks on Saudi Arabia using two new weapon systems – a new type of Delta-design drone and a new land attack cruise missile model.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2111336/un-experts-say-weapons-reaching-houthis-similar-iran%E2%80%99s