A Houthi-controlled court in Yemen’s capital has sentenced 17 individuals to death after convicting them of spying for foreign governments, state-run SABA news agency reported on Saturday.
According to the outlet, the Specialised Criminal Court in Sanaa delivered the ruling in a public session, ordering that the executions be carried out by firing squad. The court claimed the group operated as part of coordinated “espionage cells” linked to several countries.
In addition to the death sentences, the court imposed 10-year prison terms on a man and a woman, while another defendant was acquitted.
Abdulbasit Ghazi, a lawyer representing several of the accused, confirmed that the verdicts can still be appealed.
SABA reported that prosecutors accused the group of working with intelligence operatives from multiple nations, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Israel’s Mossad. Prosecutors alleged that the defendants provided sensitive information on key locations, movements of senior Yemeni officials, and missile sites.
According to the agency, the leaked intelligence enabled foreign adversaries to target military, security, and civilian facilities, resulting in dozens of casualties and significant infrastructure damage.
The Houthi authorities did not release additional details about the alleged network or the circumstances of the arrests, and independent verification of the charges remains unavailable.
