Yemen’s Al Houthi militiamen have blocked half of the United Nations’ aid delivery programmes in the war-torn country – a strong-arm tactic to force the agency to give them greater control over the massive humanitarian campaign, along with a cut of billions of dollars in foreign assistance, according to aid officials and internal documents obtained by The Associated Press.

The group has made granting access to areas under their control contingent on a flurry of conditions that aid agencies reject, in part because it would give Al Houthis greater sway over who receives aid, documents and interviews show.

Al Houthis’ obstruction has hindered several programmes that feed the near-starving population and help those displaced by the nearly 6-year civil war, a senior UN official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the situation.

“Over 2 million beneficiaries ... are directly affected,” the official said.

Al Houthis have been pushing back against UN efforts to tighten monitoring of some $370 million a year that its agencies already give to government institutions controlled mostly by the rebel group, documents show. That money is supposed to pay salaries and other administration costs, but more than a third of the money spent last year wasn’t audited, according to an internal document leaked to the AP.

The UN has largely kept quiet in public about the pressure, but behind the scenes the agency and international donors are digging in against Al Houthi demands. The AP spoke to seven workers and officials from UN and independent agencies about the situation. All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The AP also saw dozens of documents, including emails of aid officials.

In October, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, Lise Grande, sent a letter to Al Houthi-appointed “prime minister” complaining about a long list of demands.

The “overwhelming majority” of them impede or delay delivery of aid and many violate humanitarian principles, she said in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by the AP.

2% cut

For months, Al Houthis demanded a 2 per cent cut from the entire aid budget be given to them, a condition the UN and donors rejected. In an email to the AP, a spokesperson for the US Agency for International Development said Al Houthi attempts “to implement a tax on humanitarian assistance are unacceptable and directly contradict international humanitarian principles.” The United States donated $686 million to Yemen in 2019, according to USAID.

Last week, Al Houthis appeared to back off the 2 per cent demand, but continue to press for other concessions, according to aid officials.

During a meeting in Brussels last Thursday, aid agencies and international donors threatened to reduce aid if Al Houthis continue to impose restrictions on UN operations in Yemen.

The situation “has reached a breaking point,” they said in a statement.

At least one agency, the World Food Programme, is currently considering cutting back the monthly food aid it delivers to 12 million Yemenis every other month, a UN official said. “It’s unfortunate that people will suffer but this is on the Houthis,” the official said. “They can’t use people as hostages for too long.”

On Thursday, both UN and American officials said they are continuing their efforts to deliver aid to Yemenis despite Al Houthi roadblocks.

“We want to help the long-suffering people of Yemen,” said USAID Administrator Mark Green, when asked about the AP investigation during a stop in Munich. “Al Houthis are putting up restrictions that make it difficult to do that, and that’s something that we refuse to stand still for.”

Especially challenging situation

UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq added: “We’ve made clear to all parties the need to make sure that our aid can proceed, and we have regularly reiterated the importance of sustaining the humanitarian operation, which is being implemented in challenging conditions and is providing life-saving assistance to millions of Yemenis.”

Al Houthis’ demands have stoked longtime concerns among aid agencies over the rebels’ diverting of humanitarian funds and supplies into their own or their supporters’ pockets or toward their war effort.

Delivering aid in a war zone has always posed a problem for UN agencies. But officials said the situation in Yemen has been especially challenging.

Al Houthis have withheld visas and permissions for equipment and supplies and refused to grant clearances for UN missions to move through rebel-controlled areas. Aid workers said agency leaders’ past willingness to concede to some of the rebels’ demands has emboldened Al Houthi leaders to push for more.

Nearly 300,000 pregnant and nursing mothers and children under age 5 haven’t received nutrition supplements for more than six months because Al Houthis “held beneficiaries hostage to the 2 per cent” demand, another UN official said.