[27/02/2024 07:17]

ADEN - SABA
The Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology has strongly condemned and expressed its outrage at the terrorist Houthi militias for targeting the global infrastructure of wired and wireless communications, the global banking system, and the continued militarization of the terrorist militia in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

In a statement issued Tuesday, the ministry, along with its affiliated institutions represented by the Public Telecommunications Corporation and the Yemeni International Telecommunications Company (TeleYemen), reiterated that it had previously warned the international community of the dangerous and irresponsible nature of such hostile acts by the Houthi terrorist militia.

The ministry added that the Houthi terrorist militias systematically targeted the telecommunications infrastructure in Yemen using drones. It pointed out that the classification of the Houthi rebel militias by the US State Department as a global terrorist group prohibits any individuals or entities from engaging in any activities with this militia.

The ban also includes the provision, sale, or rental of communications equipment or technology, as well as the provision, sale, or rental of capacities through wireless and wired communication transmitters. This exposes individuals or violating entities to the risk of being classified on the terrorist list, said the ministry.

The statement highlighted that the largest sources of funding for the Houthi terrorist militia come from the telecommunications sector.
The United Nations expert team confirmed this in its annual reports since the illegal coup by the Houthi terrorist militia in 2015, where these militias receive approximately USD 2 billion annually from the telecommunications sector.

They have also illegally exploited the state's resources and significant revenues in the telecommunications sector for financing their terrorist activities, as documented in the annual reports of the expert team.

The statement further indicated that the Houthi terrorist militia obtains a significant portion of these revenues through its unlawful control over the sovereign telecommunications infrastructure, including wired and wireless communications systems and sovereign communication cables passing through Yemeni waters.

This includes the Asia-Africa-Europe 1 (AAE-1) cable, the Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 5 (SEA-ME-WE 5) cable, the Africa-1 cable, and the Alcatel-Lucent-Losent optical cable (FALCON).

According to the ministry's statement, the Houthi militia receives hundreds of millions of dollars from international telecommunications companies worldwide that own and operate these submarine cables through the global banking system.

The ministry emphasized in the statement the efforts made by the government and state-owned telecommunications companies in Yemen in recent years to halt the dealings of international telecommunications companies with the Houthi terrorist militia and the necessity for these companies to deal with the internationally-recognized government.

It expressed deep regret that international telecommunications companies indirectly contribute to the Houthi militia's targeting of the global infrastructure of wired and wireless communications due to their irrational and unjustified refusal to halt their dealings with the Houthis.

It confirmed that the same applies to the top-level domain (ye.), which poses a serious security threat.

The Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology renewed its call to international telecommunications companies and institutions to immediately cease any dealings with the Houthi terrorist militias and the illegitimate entities under their control in Sana'a.

It affirmed that the ministry and its state-owned entities are fully prepared to work with international telecommunications companies and facilitate their regular transition to dealing with the internationally-recognized government.

This is to ensure that the telecommunications services in Yemen and the world are not hindered or affected, the statement concluded.

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