Iran-backed Houthis Seizes Save the Children's Assets After Forced Closure in Yemen

The Iran-backed Houthis have confiscated all assets belonging to Save the Children in Yemen following the organization’s decision to shut down its operations in Houthi-controlled areas, according to informed Yemeni sources.

The seizure campaign, carried out over recent weeks, targeted the NGO’s headquarters in Sanaa and its offices in Amran, Hajjah, Saada, Hodeidah, and Ibb. Militia forces looted vehicles, generators, computers, medical supplies, and office equipment—assets worth an estimated $4 million.

High-ranking Houthi officials personally oversaw the raids, even stripping buildings of fixtures such as security gates, lighting poles, and structural modifications made by the organization.

Save the Children had announced in late May that it was suspending operations in Houthi-held territories and laying off nearly 400 staff. Former employees say the shutdown resulted from unbearable restrictions and harassment by the Iran-backed militia.

"This was systematic looting," a former staffer said. "They didn’t just take our supplies—they dismantled everything, leaving vulnerable communities without critical aid."

The militia has a history of such actions, having raided Save the Children’s Dhamar office in 2018 and stolen all equipment. Humanitarian groups accuse the Houthis of increasingly targeting aid organizations through arbitrary detentions, asset seizures, and violent intimidation.

Among the victims is Dr. Tawfiq Al-Mikhlafi, Save the Children’s education grants officer, detained since January 2024 on fabricated espionage charges. In a more brutal case, security officer Hisham Al-Hakimi was abducted in September 2023 and later declared dead in custody, with his body withheld from relatives.

Observers warn that without international intervention, the Houthis’ escalating crackdown will paralyze humanitarian operations across northern Yemen, where millions depend on aid for survival.