For years, the U.N. has poured millions of dollars into the coffers of Yemen’s Houthi rebels as part of the massive aid program to keep a near-starving population alive. Now the rebels demand more and are holding up food deliveries to get it.
In this Oct. 1, 2018 file photo, a malnourished boy sits on a hospital bed at the Aslam Health Center, Hajjah, Yemen. Houthi rebels in Yemen have blocked half of the United Nations’ aid delivery programs in the war-torn country — a strong-arm tactic to force the agency to give them greater control over the massive humanitarian campaign, along with a cut of billions of dollars in foreign assistance, according to aid officials and internal documents obtained by The Associated Press.
The U.N. has largely kept quiet in public about the pressure, but behind the scenes the agency and international donors are digging in against the Houthi demands. The AP spoke to seven workers and officials from U.N. and independent agencies about the situation. All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The AP also saw dozens of documents, including emails of aid officials.
Last week, the Houthis appeared to back off the 2% demand, but continue to press for other concessions, according to aid officials. U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq added: “We’ve made clear to all parties the need to make sure that our aid can proceed, and we have regularly reiterated the importance of sustaining the humanitarian operation, which is being implemented in challenging conditions and is providing life-saving assistance to millions of Yemenis.”
Nearly 300,000 pregnant and nursing mothers and children under age 5 haven’t received nutrition supplements for more than six months because the Houthis “held beneficiaries hostage to the 2%” demand, another U.N. official said. The U.N.’s massive aid program, totaling $8.35 billion since 2015, is vital to keeping many Yemenis alive. The U.N. calls the situation in Yemen the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
With the economy in freefall, the U.N. aid effort is a major source of foreign currency into the country. “It carries heavy financial burden. It’s in charge of facilitating, distributing, security, and organizing the work of the agencies,” he said. Some of the money went to salaries for doctors, teachers and other vital employees who have otherwise gone without pay amid the war. Millions more went to the Houthi aid agency for administrative costs and salaries.
Some officials in the Houthi aid body, SCMCHA, appear to be receiving multiple salaries, the data shows. For a time, three U.N. agencies were each giving salaries to the body’s president, his deputy and general managers. Each of the officials received a total of $10,000 a month from the agencies, the spreadsheet shows.
The moves by the U.N. have prompted the Houthis to launch a media campaign denouncing the humanitarian agency as corrupt and wasteful.
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