Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
The organization “Human Rights Watch” said on Thursday that Houthi forces attacked several civilian homes and other civilian infrastructure in Yemen between January 5 and 12, 2025, in search of militants.
The attacks in Hankat Al Masoud, a village in the Houthi-controlled Al-Bayda Governorate in northern Yemen, resulted in several deaths and dozens of injuries.
It added that Houthi forces also arrested hundreds of people from the village and are holding many of them without charges. The Houthi attacks may amount to war crimes.
Nico Jafarnia, Yemen and Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “The Houthis have caused great harm to Yemeni civilians. The Houthis’ repeated attacks against civilians under their control should be investigated independently, and the international community should take more serious steps to ensure accountability and strengthen the protection of Yemeni civilians.”
Human Rights Watch interviewed four people, including a family member of one of the victims and two human rights activists who were following the situation. The researchers also verified videos and photos posted on Facebook, X, and YouTube, and analyzed high-resolution and low-resolution satellite images.
According to the Houthi Ministry of Interior, the military operation was carried out in search of militants who attacked a security patrol and another checkpoint in the governorate, killing and wounding soldiers.
People interviewed said that the Houthis used drones, armored vehicles, missiles, and small and light weapons to attack civilians and civilian objects. Human Rights Watch was able to visually verify the Houthis’ use of small and light weapons in the attacks.
Mohammed, whose family name was withheld for his safety, said that his uncle, whom he described as a civilian, was killed in his home during the attack. He added: “They took his body and refused to hand it over.” He also knows five other people who were also killed in the attacks, but Human Rights Watch was unable to verify their deaths. The Yemeni human rights organization “Sam” reported that 15 people were killed in the attacks.
Mohammed also said that he learned from family and friends in the area that “Houthi forces looted homes, stole large sums of money, gold, and personal weapons.”
A human rights activist from the area said that he collected information from residents indicating that the Houthis destroyed civilian homes and attacked civilians in the village, and that dozens of families were displaced as a result of the attacks. Sam organization documented the destruction of 10 homes and the burning of a mosque and a religious school, in addition to looting and arbitrary detention of hundreds of civilians.
Human Rights Watch identified a video posted on X on January 11 showing dozens of men and a pickup truck heading east on a road outside the village. The person who recorded the video says that the Houthis are fleeing the village, and gunfire can be heard in the distance.
The researchers also verified videos and photos posted online showing men in camouflage uniforms carrying rifles and setting fire to a two-story building. The researchers also analyzed high-resolution satellite images taken on January 18 above Hankat Al Masoud showing traces of fire on the roof of the building. A second building about 220 meters southeast of the two-story building shows signs of extensive damage.
Sam organization and the people interviewed said that the Houthis imposed a four-day siege on the village, and did not allow food or medicine to enter the area. Since January 5, the Houthis have intermittently cut off and restricted internet and communications in the area.
The Houthis control the “Ministry of Communications and Information Technology” in Sana’a, and have repeatedly cut off and restricted telecommunications services in areas under their control in light of protests and other events. The Houthis’ blocking and restrictions on the internet and communications made it difficult for human rights organizations to gather information from residents about ongoing violations.
The activist said that it was difficult to get the names of the injured and dead due to the communications outage. He added that even when there was no outage, it was difficult to get information because people were too afraid to talk on their phones about what was happening in the area.
On January 15, the Houthi Ministry of Interior announced in a statement that the security campaign in Hankat Al Masoud area of the Al Qurayshiyah district had succeeded in “cleansing the area of criminal ISIS elements” gathered there and resulted in “the arrest of dozens of criminal ISIS elements and the death of a number of them.” However, Human Rights Watch found no evidence that the dead, wounded, or detainees were members of ISIS, or that ISIS elements were present in the village.
Deliberate attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure are war crimes
Throughout the ongoing conflict in Yemen for more than nine years, the Houthis have repeatedly attacked civilians and civilian infrastructure. On March 19, 2024, Houthi authorities blew up a house with explosives in Rada’a, Al-Bayda Governorate, killing nine civilians – all from one family, including children – and wounding at least seven others. The targeted house collapsed, and the explosion caused “extensive damage” to five other houses in its vicinity.
The Houthis acknowledged that their forces committed violations during March 19, 2024 attacks. The spokesman for the Ministry of Interior described the attack as “an irresponsible reaction using excessive and illegal force.” Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi expressed his condolences in a televised speech and ordered the concerned authorities to investigate and provide compensation to the affected families, which they eventually did, according to two people who spoke with Human Rights Watch.
In 2021, Human Rights Watch documented the Houthis’ indiscriminate firing of artillery shells and ballistic missiles at populated areas in Yemen’s Marib Governorate, causing civilian casualties, including women and children, and causing a new wave of civilian displacement.
Jafarnia said: “The Houthis have repeatedly shown their willingness to kill and arbitrarily detain Yemenis living in areas under their control. Statements and apologies will never make up for the loss of civilian lives. The Houthis should immediately stop their attacks on civilians, release all detainees, lift the media blackout on Al-Bayda completely, and compensate the victims and their families.”
