ADEN: Yemen’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates has strongly condemned a statement issued by the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Yemen, describing it as containing misleading allegations and blatant interference in the internal affairs of the Republic of Yemen.
In a statement carried by Saba, the ministry said the Iranian statement was an attempt to provide political and media cover for the Houthi militia and to disclaim Tehran’s responsibility for prolonging the war and deepening the humanitarian tragedy of the Yemeni people.
The ministry said the Iranian position showed Tehran’s open adoption of the militia’s narrative and its justification of the militia’s actions. It said this came alongside findings by competent Yemeni agencies that, according to the ministry, Iranian interference had moved beyond financing, arming and training to direct participation in planning and managing operations.
The ministry said the combination of military support on the ground and diplomatic cover at international forums was further evidence of Iran’s role in undermining the Yemeni state and threatening regional security and waterways.
It rejected what it called the Iranian regime’s exploitation of the blood of the victims of the Souq Al-Hadarah incident in Al-Wazi’iyah district of Taiz governorate, or any other area, to promote accusations that contradicted statements by the competent Yemeni authorities. The ministry said Yemeni authorities had also called for independent investigations into violations of human rights and international law by the Houthi militia.
The ministry recalled an announcement by Yemen’s Ministry of Interior regarding the presence of 21 foreign experts working with the Houthi militia, including 14 from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and seven from Hezbollah.
It said their tasks included command and control, management of operations, work on ballistic missiles, drones and electronic warfare, smuggling of military components, and coordination of maritime operations, including the selection of commercial vessels for targeting.
According to the ministry, these activities amounted to a fully fledged general staff whose role went beyond training to supervision, planning and direction of operations, for which Yemenis paid the price with their lives, security and livelihoods.
The ministry said Tehran, by arming the Houthi militia and supplying it with experts, enabled it to continue what it termed terrorism in Yemen, including abductions, killings, terrorising civilians, shelling cities and civilian facilities, and besieging and starving the population.
It also referred to repeated attacks on the territory of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, commercial shipping, and navigation in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The ministry said the interference reflected a pattern long pursued by the Iranian regime to undermine the security of states in the region by financing armed groups that challenged national governments’ exclusive authority over the use of force and decisions of war and peace.
It recalled that the arms embargo imposed under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216, and expanded under Resolution 2624 to cover the Houthis as an entity, included weapons, equipment, technical assistance, training and financing related to military activities.
The ministry said Iran’s own interests, security and future relations in the region required respect for the sovereignty of states, good-neighbourly relations based on shared interests and non-interference in internal affairs, and an end to the policy of arming affiliated subversive groups.
It said the Iranian regime would be better served by using its resources and wealth to improve the livelihood of the Iranian people and meet their needs for development, services and employment instead of spending them on arms, smuggling networks and actions that destabilised the region.
The ministry said that during 12 years of war, which it said was ignited by the Houthi militia with Iranian backing, Tehran had offered the Yemeni people “nothing but missiles, suicide drones, explosive-laden boats and experts of destruction”.
By contrast, it said Saudi Arabia had provided relief, humanitarian and development assistance, as well as facilitations for Yemeni expatriates whose work and remittances supported millions.
The Foreign Ministry said respect for Yemen’s sovereignty began with halting the arming of militias, withdrawing experts and ending interference in Yemen’s national decision-making.
It said if Tehran was genuinely concerned about the lives of Yemenis, it should first stop using the tools that prolonged their suffering and deepened the destruction.
