September Net

Houthi militia leaders in Sana’a have looted and started trading thousands of archaeological artifacts that date back to the ancient times.

Official sources said the Houthi leaders have refused to hand over the historical antiques they’ve seized from Al-Saleh Mosque to the General Authority for Antiquities and Museums.

The sources noted that thousands of precious and rare relics that were at the al-Saleh Mosque  disappeared after the militias takeover it in early December 2017.

“There are serious fears that Houthi militia would smuggle such priceless treasures abroad.”

“The Houthis have already been involved in the smuggling and trading of many rare artifacts,” sources said.

They confirmed that the Iran-backed Houthi rebels don’t care “if Yemen lost a cultural heritage that is belong to all Yemenis and irreplaceable.”

Yemeni legitimate government has warned against selling Yemeni antiquities and manuscripts in the black market of art in the United States and most Western countries.

Yemen’s ambassador to United States Dr. Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak and Debra Lehr, president of the American Antiquities Alliance Foundation, co-wrote an article in which they accused al-Qaeda and Houthi militias of selling Yemeni antiquities to finance their war against the Yemeni people.