By Faisal Abu Bakr | 2025-05-15

ADEN -- The Houthis have replaced established, safe medicines in Yemen with expensive alternatives of questionable effectiveness, leaving people with chronic conditions particularly vulnerable, according to multiple sources.

The anticonvulsant medication Tegretol has "disappeared," said private sector worker Abdul Aziz Mohammed, whose two children require daily seizure medication to manage their condition.

"New, unknown brands have appeared, selling for three times the price and lacking the same effectiveness," he told Al-Fassel.

The Houthi-affiliated Supreme Authority for Medicines and Medical Supplies triggered the crisis by suspending import permits for drugs of known origin and strength, a pharmacist who requested anonymity told Al-Fassel.

In many cases, medications have been replaced by drugs produced by new companies tied to the Iran-backed group, he said.

"We're forced to deal with these new brands or close down, as most original brands have gradually disappeared from the market," he added, noting that people "have no choice but to buy them, especially those with chronic diseases."

Following the money

The Iranian regime has leveraged the drug trade in Houthi-controlled areas to finance Yemen's war while consolidating control, per the Platform for Tracking Organized Crime and Money Laundering in Yemen (PTOC).

The scheme involves granting exclusive agency rights to Houthi-affiliated companies, according to the PTOC report, issued in January.

Among them, Green Star Pharmaceutical and Medical Supplies Trading, the Iranian Ronak Company, Mohammed Mahdi Abdullah al-Shaer's agencies, Taradhi Ltd Trading, Magnico General Trading, and Al-Fares for Pharmaceuticals.

Tehran seeks to strengthen the Houthis' economic position, enabling their expansion of military operations into government-controlled areas while replacing trusted medicines with Iranian alternatives, per the PTOC report.

The Houthis also have manipulated humanitarian aid channels, according to Abdul Qader al-Kharraz, director of research at the Berlin-based Democratic Arabic Center.

Manipulation of resources

Al-Kharraz has been working to expose the corruption of numerous relief organizations in Yemen through his campaign, "Where Is the Money?"

The campaign exposes how shipments of medicine enter Yemen via Oman's Shahn port, under forged paperwork, he told Al-Fassel.

"This manipulation of state resources, including taxes and customs, funds weapons purchases and enriches Houthi leaders," he added, noting that "these medicines may be Iranian, with tampered specifications and active ingredients."

"The Houthi militia uses everything that harms the Yemeni people to serve its Iran-linked project," economic analyst Abdul Aziz Thabet told Al-Fassel.

The restriction of medicine imports to Houthi-affiliated companies "is a crime against society," he added.

"This is a serious matter that the legitimate government and international community must combat, just like arms smuggling," Thabet said.

"It is more dangerous, because it drains the health and wealth of the poor, especially those with chronic diseases and others seeking curative medicines."