A Yemeni man in his twenties has been killed while fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, according to local sources.
The man was named Issam Ali al-Mashouli, from Al Wazi'iyah district in Taiz governorate, previously served with Yemeni army before he was recruited by middlemen active in enlisting Yemenis to fight on behalf of Russian forces.
In March this year, the US Treasury Department uncovered a human trafficking operation carried out by Houthi-linked groups who recruited Yemeni civilians under false pretenses to fight alongside Russia’s forces in Ukraine.
This scheme was reportedly carried out through the Al-Jabri General Trading And Investment Company, and provided the Houthis with additional funds for their military operations.
Last November, investigative researcher Lou Osborne from the Swiss organisation Impact, revealed that contracts between Houthi mercenaries and the Russian army were being arranged through a company connected to pro-Houthi parliamentarian and businessman Abdulwali Abdoh Hasan Al-Jabri.
Osborne added that Jabri was “involved in arms trading between Russia and the Houthis,” and pointed out that some fighters were being recruited in the Jordanian capital Amman “while working in restaurants”, despite lacking any real military experience.
According to Osborne, potential Yemeni recruits were being lured with promises of earning $10,000 upfront and $2,500 monthly, but upon their entry into the Russian army were paid only around $260 a month.
The deaths of a number of Yemenis fighting alongside Russian forces have been reported, with a number of young Yemenis inside Russia - mostly students - being recruited to join the army, in addition to those brought from Yemen through recruitment companies led by Jabri.