Yemen’s State-Owned Airline Suspends Vital Route in Protest of Houthi Restrictions
Yemen Airways, the country’s state-run airline, has taken a significant step by suspending the only air route out of the capital city held by rebels, in a bold protest against Houthi restrictions on its financial assets.
As of the end of September, Yemen Airways was operating six flights each week between the rebel-held capital, Sanaa, and the Jordanian capital, Amman. This route was reintroduced last year as part of a U.N.-brokered cease-fire between the Houthi rebels and the internationally recognized government. Although the cease-fire agreement expired in October 2022, both sides refrained from taking actions that could reignite all-out fighting.
The conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when the Houthi rebels took control of Sanaa, forcing the government into exile. Subsequently, a Saudi-led coalition entered the war in early 2015 with the aim of restoring the government to power.
The airline has attributed its decision to the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, who have been withholding $80 million of the company’s funds in banks under their control in Sanaa. Yemen Airways stated on Saturday that the rebels rejected a proposal to release 70% of the frozen funds. They highlighted that over 70% of their revenues are generated from sales in Sanaa.
The Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported an unnamed source condemning the airline’s suspension of services, stating that the rebels had offered to release 60% of the airline’s funds in Sanaa. The dispute between the Houthi rebels and the national airline unfolds at a time when the parties, including Saudi Arabia, have been making efforts to reach a peace agreement.
The ongoing conflict in Yemen has escalated into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, resulting in widespread suffering and hunger. Yemen was already considered the Arab world’s poorest nation prior to the conflict. The war has led to the deaths of more than 150,000 individuals, including both combatants and civilians, and has resulted in one of the most severe humanitarian crises globally.
Recently, tensions between the Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia have appeared to be easing, with both sides engaging in peace talks that have yielded positive results. However, these diplomatic efforts were marred by a Houthi attack last week that claimed the lives of four Bahraini troops patrolling the southern border of Saudi Arabia as part of a coalition force.
Additionally, the Houthi rebels barred four activists from the Mwatana for Human Rights group from boarding a flight at Sanaa airport on Saturday, without providing a clear legal justification for their actions. The group reported that Houthi officials interrogated its chairperson, Radhya al-Mutawakel, her deputy, and three other members before informing them of their travel restrictions, citing “higher orders.” At the time of this report, no comment was available from a Houthi spokesperson.
Mwatana for Human Rights labeled this incident as just one example of a series of violations by the Houthi rebels at Sanaa airport and along land routes connecting rebel-held territories with other regions of Yemen. Furthermore, last month, the rebels detained numerous individuals who took to the streets to commemorate Yemen’s September 26 revolution, which marked the establishment of Yemen’s republic in 1962. Amnesty International called these actions “outrageous” and demanded the immediate release of those detained.