Geneva - SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties has released an extensive human rights report titled "Organized Looting: The Hidden Face of the Judicial Guardian within the Houthi Group," which focuses specifically on the systematic looting practices carried out by the group against the Modern and Global Pharmaceutical Companies. The report illustrates how the judicial guardian is used as a tool to target opponents and infringe upon property rights.
The report is based on a comprehensive methodology that relies on monitoring and documentation, including exclusive testimonies from sources within the two companies, alongside an analysis of official documents and verified statistics, as well as surveys of several economic experts regarding the implications of these practices on the Yemeni economy and their negative impacts on investment. It also adopts a human rights approach aimed at assessing the legality of these actions and their compatibility with human rights principles, particularly the right to possession and ownership as stipulated in international agreements.
SAM stated that since seizing control of the capital, Sana'a, the Houthi movement has begun implementing a series of measures aimed at confiscating and looting the properties of Yemeni citizens, including the funds of political opponents or those deemed adversaries. These actions are often based on vague accusations, such as claims of "treason" or "loyalty to aggression," justified by asserting they target elements of the "corrupt former regime."
The organization added that the group has relied on a range of coercive tools, including the judiciary, where public funds prosecution and courts have been used to pursue individuals and justify confiscating their properties. Additionally, the Central Bank in Sana'a has been employed to impose seizures on opponents' funds. The group has also introduced a new mechanism known as the "judicial guardian," which possesses broad powers allowing it to execute confiscation procedures without legal oversight or fair judicial processes, including issuing orders to freeze individuals' assets without presenting clear evidence or adhering to recognized legal standards. This has transformed these funds and properties into direct sources of financing for the group's military and political activities, representing a violation of international humanitarian law that exacerbates economic suffering and infringes upon property rights, necessitating international accountability.
SAM’s report highlights a specific case involving a raid by Houthi forces on Modern Pharmaceutical Company and Global Pharmaceutical Company in June 2024. During this raid, six managers and employees were arrested and held in an informal detention facility run by the group. The following day, the specialized criminal prosecution office, which is affiliated with the Houthi movement, issued a memorandum to the Central Bank of Yemen demanding a freeze on all accounts, balances, and financial transfers related to the company, noting that these practices have led to significant financial losses.
The report indicates that losses incurred by the company due to these arbitrary practices are estimated at $55 million. Among these losses is damage to all types of medicines stored in factories due to exposure to unsuitable environmental conditions, resulting in a loss of global quality standards. The report also documents severe violations against company employees, including widespread arrests affecting several workers. Furthermore, testimonies indicate that arrested employees faced psychological and physical pressures, reflecting the extent of harassment and negative impact exerted by the Houthi movement on the private sector, threatening economic stability in the country.
SAM Organization documented three deaths linked to pressures and violations faced by employees of both companies. It also recorded instances where entities affiliated with the "judicial guardian" appointed by the Houthis employed systematic torture against employees of Modern Pharmaceutical Company and Global Pharmaceutical Company. These practices included physical and psychological torture methods aimed at coercing workers—including doctors and engineers—into providing forced confessions to justify control over both companies. These actions represent a blatant violation of international human rights standards and raise concerns about the safety of officials and workers in Yemen's pharmaceutical sector.
The report notes that the systematic pattern followed by the Houthi movement in targeting major companies and properties belonging to opposing individuals resembles historical models where totalitarian regimes seized properties from political opponents to cripple their ability to act against them while redirecting confiscated resources to support their war agenda amid their near-total reliance on self-funding and illicit revenues.
In an exclusive statement, financial expert Abdul Wahid Al-Aubali confirmed that looting and confiscation of opponents' funds by terrorist groups like the Houthis serve important strategic and operational purposes. These groups require substantial financial resources to fund their operations, including purchasing weapons and paying fighters' salaries while achieving financial stability through looting opponents' funds instead of relying on external support. Moreover, asset confiscation is used as a means to economically weaken opponents, reducing their capacity to resist Houthi influence, thereby increasing dominance over areas under their control.
Al-Aubali added that looting and confiscation serve to intimidate opponents by allowing the group to send strong messages about the consequences of opposing their rule, thus reinforcing control and fear among residents. The group justifies these operations as part of "tax" measures or sanctions against opponents, helping them legitimize their violent rule based on coercion while redistributing confiscated assets among loyal members and fighters, thereby enhancing internal cohesion and creating a network of patronage. Additionally, targeting opponents' wealth disrupts local economies, creating an economic chaos that can be exploited by the group to consolidate its influence while increasing residents' dependency on them as a primary source for resources and services.
SAM considers that what the Houthi movement is doing through arbitrary looting and seizure of funds constitutes a war crime under international humanitarian law comparable to theft under Yemeni legislation. It emphasized that these practices have been carried out by the group without any military necessity, adding that most looting operations occur within cities under its control, following a methodology aimed at avenging adversaries—especially those who have been displaced or forced to leave Yemen.
In conclusion, SAM presented a set of recommendations directed at Ansar Allah (the Houthis), the internationally recognized Yemeni government, UN Security Council members, and the international community. The organization called on the Houthi movement to cease all acts of looting and confiscation of funds belonging to its opponents and civilians while returning all looted funds and properties to their rightful owners. It stressed the need to annul all seizure orders issued by judicial guardianship authorities or courts under Houthi control while halting interference with justice by ending all activities conducted by specialized prosecution offices in Sana'a.
SAM also urged Yemen's internationally recognized government to establish a special unit for tracking down assets looted by Houthis while monitoring all activities related to money laundering efforts against banks, companies, and institutions. It recommended cataloging all individuals involved in guardianship or administration over looted assets in areas controlled by Ansar Allah for accountability purposes while calling for establishing a dedicated unit for documenting all assets seized or looted by Houthis.
The organization called upon UN Security Council members and the international community to intensify monitoring over financial activities conducted by Ansar Allah in Yemen or between them and associated figures or companies abroad. It demanded close scrutiny over money laundering activities carried out by this group along with financial transfers between them and individuals abroad while recommending listing all individuals mentioned in this report under sanctions according to UN Security Council resolutions concerning Yemen. Sam emphasized establishing an international team specialized in monitoring and tracing assets looted by Houthis while collecting documents related to these assets ensuring their recovery along with holding perpetrators accountable for these violations.