Asharq Al-Awsat

Fuel loaded from ports in Iran has generated revenue to finance Yemen’s Houthi insurgents, according to a report by a UN panel of experts seen by Agence France Presse.

The findings are expected to again raise questions about Iran’s support for the militias in the war that has pushed Yemen to the brink of humanitarian catastrophe, AFP said.

In its final report for 2018, the panel said it had “identified a small number of companies, both within Yemen and outside, which operated as front companies,” using fake documents to conceal fuel donations.

The fuel was “for the benefit of a listed individual” who is on a UN sanctions blacklist, it added.

“The revenue from the sale of this fuel was used to finance the Houthi war effort,” said the 85-page report sent to the Security Council.

The panel found that the fuel was loaded from ports in Iran under false documentation to avoid UN inspections of the cargo, it added.

The experts have in past reports pointed to a possible Iranian link to missiles fired by the militias at Saudi Arabia, after they traveled to Riyadh to examine weapons debris.

In a previous report, the experts said they were investigating monthly fuel donations from Iran valued at $30 million.