Houthis refer 12 suspects to court over espionage charges

The Houthi authorities in Yemen have referred 12 individuals to court on charges of spying for the United States and Israel, according to the group’s official media outlets on Monday. The move marks the latest phase in a broad arrest campaign targeting what the group says are long-running “spy networks” operating against it.

Judge Abdullah Zahra of the Houthi-controlled prosecution in Sana’a said the defendants had been detained as part of a “US-Israeli spy network” accused of conducting espionage and sabotage activities over several decades, allegedly in coordination with individuals linked to the US Central Intelligence Agency.

The announcement comes weeks after a Houthi court handed down death sentences to 17 people on similar charges of spying for Israel, the United States and Saudi Arabia. At the time, the court said the executions — to be carried out publicly by firing squad — were intended to serve as “a deterrent,” claiming the group had collaborated with Israeli Mossad operatives and attempted to recruit Yemeni citizens.

According to the Houthi authorities, information allegedly supplied by the dismantled networks contributed to attacks on military, security and civilian sites, resulting in dozens of deaths and significant damage to infrastructure. In the earlier case, two additional defendants received ten-year prison sentences, while one was acquitted.

The developments come amid continued Israeli airstrikes inside Yemen over the past two years, which Tel Aviv says are retaliatory measures against Houthi attacks targeting Israel over its ongoing genocide in Gaza.