The Yemeni government condemns the Houthi militia's looting of UN food aid in Saada.

The Yemeni government has condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist Houthi militia's looting of the World Food Programme's food stocks from its warehouses in Saada Governorate.

A statement published by Information Minister Muammar al-Eryani on his X platform account clarified that the Houthi militia had looted more than 2.5 million kilograms of goods allocated to those in need in areas under its control. He considered this to be part of its dark record of obstructing the efforts of international organizations and hindering the delivery of essential humanitarian aid to millions of Yemenis suffering from catastrophic humanitarian conditions.

Al-Eryani said that the Houthi militia has not only caused one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, but also continues to undermine the international community's efforts to provide aid to those in need. He explained that "these criminal practices clearly demonstrate that they do not care about the suffering of the Yemeni people, but rather seek to deepen the humanitarian crisis, in a behavior that confirms that they are merely a criminal terrorist gang, with no connection to the concepts of the state or its institutions."

In his statement, the Yemeni minister referred to previous similar incidents by the militia, and recalled what the World Food Programme revealed in 2018, regarding the militia's manipulation of the selection of aid recipients and the sale of aid for the purpose of enriching themselves and "stealing food from the mouths of the hungry."

Al-Eryani stressed that "the systematic targeting of humanitarian aid and attacks on food stores constitute a serious violation of international law and require urgent action from the international community to hold accountable the perpetrators of these crimes from among the Houthi militia leaders, ensure the protection of humanitarian aid from any political interference or exploitation, and prevent the militia from continuing to use food as a weapon to blackmail civilians and exploit their tragedies."

Minister Al-Eryani called on the United Nations, its specialized agencies, and international organizations operating in Yemen to take decisive steps to halt these repeated violations, immediately relocate their headquarters to the interim capital, Aden, to ensure a safe and stable working environment for humanitarian workers, and coordinate with the legitimate government to ensure the continued unhindered delivery of aid to those who deserve it. He also called for the imposition of strict international sanctions on the Houthi militia leaders responsible for these crimes against humanity.