Iran-backed Houthis intensify forcible recruitment of children, send them to Marib

Local sources in Yemen's Sanaa said that the Iran-backed Houthis have intensified the process of forcible recruitment of children from various areas of the Bani Al-Harith district, the largest district of the capital of Sanaa in terms of area.

The sources, who refused to reveal their identities, indicated that the impersonator of the director of the Bani Al-Harith district, Hamad bin Rakan Al-Sharif, and Adel Al-Hambasi, the social official in the district, and a number of militia supervisors, are mobilizing children between the ages of 16-17 and issuing them recruitment forms and military numbers.

"The militia deceived the families of the children, telling them that they were recruited to be security elements in Sanaa, and concealed from them the fact that they were gathering them with the aim of arming them, sending them to the crematoriums of death on the fighting fronts". The sources revealed.

"The Houthis had prepared areas outside Sanaa to receive them, with the aim of arming them and pushing them to the fighting fronts in Marib, which is witnessing violent battles, in which the Houthis lost tens of thousands of Yemenis who were deceived to defend the Houthi project". The sources said.

There were frequent reports of forced recruitment by the Houthis against children, and increased fear of the expansion of these operations, classified as violations against childhood, with the start of a new school season that the Houthis exploited to recruit school children.

In August 8, 2021, the Mayon Organization revealed in a report that (640) Yemeni children were killed during the first six months of this year, their ages ranged between (13-17 ).