Russia recruits Yemenis, sends them to the battlefronts

Yemeni fighters fighting with Russia against Ukraine (Screenshot)

Hundreds of Yemenis have fallen into the trap of human trafficking companies, overseen by Houthi leaders as part of their dealings with the Russian side. They deceived victims by offering lucrative civilian jobs, attractive salaries, and many benefits, unaware that these promises would lead them into the line of fire against Ukrainian forces, making the chances of survival very slim, if not nonexistent.

A network of Yemeni and Russian brokers took advantage of the difficult living conditions in Yemen resulting from the war that erupted after the Houthi militia coup on September 21, 2014.

The network became active nationwide, expanding internationally to include Oman, Lebanon, and Egypt. It attracted hundreds of young Yemenis under various temptations, the most prominent being lucrative salaries, allowing them to bring their families, granting them Russian citizenship. The latter was the most enticing for them, given their desire to immigrate and obtain European citizenship for the ease of travel between European countries, or smuggling through Belarusian borders and others upon their arrival.

Initially, dozens of Yemenis traveled to Russia voluntarily but in complete secrecy, passing through Oman, Dubai, and finally reaching Moscow. There, they were received by representatives of the network from Yemen and Russia to undergo training for two to three weeks in training camps before being divided into small groups and sent separately to the frontlines.

The chances of survival from death were very rare, as were the opportunities to escape to Europe, which later diminished until they were virtually nonexistent under Russian pressure, according to the victims' videos circulated on social media and warnings to those who communicated with them from their friends. However, these warnings did not receive media attention, as they were kept secret for fear of being targeted for elimination and harsh treatment.

These warnings have reduced the flow of victims and caused financial losses for the network of brokers (Yemenis and Russians) who were charging large sums of money for each person they attracted. They resorted to deceiving new victims and misleading them by claiming that there were civil jobs in various fields, including for university graduates, with lucrative salaries, monthly benefits, citizenship grants, and facilitation of spouse and children relocation.

The network's momentum returned at the beginning of the current year 2024, and its activity spread through a network of brokers operated under the name "Al-Jaberi Company." It succeeded in attracting and sending hundreds of people, and signed contracts with them for various positions, paying them large sums of money in advance reaching up to $4,000 per person, to ensure their commitment, without these victims knowing that the company is trading with them, according to victims' video circulated on social media in the past few days, as pleas for the Yemeni government to intervene quickly to rescue them and bring them home.

Victims' appeals, including engineers, indicated that Al-Jaberi Company includes three Yemeni individuals residing in Oman: Abdulwali Abdu Hassan Al-Jabrei - company manager, the Houthi leader, Mohammed Qasim Mahyoub Al-Olyani - company representative in the Oman, and Hani Mohammed Ali Al-Zuraiqi - company representative in Russia.

Sources close to the victims told Khabar Agency that this company (Houthi) is extracting travel visas for them from the Russian embassy in Muscat, then sending them to Moscow where their Yemeni passports are confiscated and replaced with Russian documents containing their personal information.

After that, they are forcibly sent to training camps, close to the frontlines near the borders of Ukraine, to receive military training and basic Russian language skills in just two weeks. They are then assigned to small groups and sent over military vehicles to the contact zones as part of Russian military units.

Victims' Testimonies

One of the victims explained in a video he posted on social media, with six of his Yemeni colleagues standing next to him, that Russian forces sent 25 of their colleagues to the frontlines. They were all killed by Ukrainian forces.

A second group appeared in another video, stating that they had received promises of receiving $50,000 in case of the fighter's death during the battle. After three months, the (fighter) can bring his wife and children and be granted Russian citizenship.

The members of the group were seen digging huge trenches, they said that this was happening under the supervision of Russians and they were rarely allowed breaks, and spent hours working without food.

The accents of these Yemenis in the videos indicate that they come from various provinces, and they say that many of them have "agricultural" entry visas to work on Russian farms.

"Russian forces are leaving the bodies of their fallen comrades on the battlefronts, while the wounded are being sent to unknown homes without any medical care that corresponds to their injuries". They said.