|
CNN reveals how Houthis turned food aid into a weapon of war
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The United Nations...an idea whose time has gone... , primarily the World Food Program, has been providing aid to millions in need of proper nutrition in Yemen  ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic...but according to a new report, a significant part of this has been stolen by the Houthis. The CNN report says that the Houthis have stolen around 1,200 metric tons of aid in the form of food in the capital alone. According to the report, this trend has been around for a while, with the UN releasing a report in 2018 claiming that 1 percent of its aid was not going to their allocated areas. But in reality, many families are not being helped." The Houthis control the aid agency that was appointed by the WFP to distribute the aid. The stealing is only adding to the misery of a country struggling with poverty and conflict. The UN suspects that the aid is stolen in order to be diverted from children to fighters or Houthis supporters. CNN said that Issham and the people of Bani Qais did not receive any aid " they have received no grain, cooking oil or other aid supplies" for many weeks. The Arab Coalition in Yemen has repeatedly said that Houthis have been blocking the passage of aid ships. Also, the Coalition has said that the Houthis were not pulling out from Hodeidah and its port, and were obstructing the work of the UN mission in Yemen and also blocking the passage of vessels carrying aid to the country's ports. It asserted in many statements that Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews... militias deliberately disable ships and unload their cargo in Hodeidah and Salif ports. The diverted aid was initially shielded from the WFP by the use of fake records and false thumbprints confirming the handout of the aid, which was being sold in the city rather than being given to those villages in need. Amira Saleh, a woman whose name has been listed for aid and was even said to have received $440 has claimed that she did not receive any aid for half a year. Other women said that the aid that they were entitled to was denied to them due to lack of records that they had left behind in the cities they had fled. This was another excuse that the Houthis used to divert the aid, selling it to gain political support. Also, a local NGO worker in Sanaa was questioned by security after speaking to CNN without the presence of the government minder. Posted by: Fred 2019-05-23 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=541597 |