Yemen's interior minister has accused Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah of playing a direct role in directing Houthi military operations, saying 21 foreign experts from the two groups are working alongside the Iran-backed movement in six governorates.

Interior Minister Ibrahim Ali Haidan said Tuesday that the group includes 14 specialists from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and seven from Hezbollah. Their involvement, he said, extends beyond training and weapons supplies to operational planning, command and control, maritime attacks and the development of missile and drone capabilities.

In a statement issued by the Interior Ministry, Haidan said the experts were deployed in Hodeidah, Sanaa, Saada, Hajjah, Amran and al-Khawkhah. Eight were based in Hodeidah, four in Sanaa, four in Saada, two in Hajjah, two in Amran and one in al-Khawkhah.

Their areas of expertise include military operations management, command and control, ballistic missiles, drones, surveillance and communications systems, radar and electronic warfare. They also oversee supply networks and the smuggling of military components, according to the minister.

Haidan said the specialists coordinate maritime operations, select commercial vessels as targets and develop explosive-laden boats and autonomous underwater vehicles. They also train Houthi fighters in mine-laying, siege tactics and urban warfare.

“This is not a training mission, but a fully fledged military general staff,” Haidan said, describing the experts' role in the group's military structure.

He said the operation was led by an IRGC military officer who “appears on camera as the ambassador of a state that claims to respect international law.” The ministry did not identify the officer or specify the country whose ambassador he was referring to.

According to Haidan, the group also includes an operations supervisor, a strategic adviser and the head of a joint operations room, alongside senior and mid-level officers specializing in missiles, drones, radar, communications, naval operations and electronic warfare.

The minister accused the experts of involvement beyond military activities, saying they also supported political, organizational, social and media efforts aimed at consolidating Iranian influence in Yemen and building long-term networks of loyalty. He said these activities were intended to distance the country from its Arab surroundings.

Haidan warned that the experts' presence threatened regional security and international shipping, particularly the safety of seafarers and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait. He said the activities also put commercial trade routes and energy supplies at risk, while raising concerns that military technology and expertise could spread to other armed groups sharing the same ideology.

He urged the international community to designate the Houthis a terrorist organization, dismantle their financing and weapons-supply networks, and enforce the arms embargo imposed under United Nations Security Council Resolutions 2216 and 2624.

Minister links foreign support to siege of Taiz

Haidan linked the foreign experts' presence to the Houthi siege of Taiz, saying Iranian and Hezbollah support had contributed to the suffering of residents in the city.

“The Houthi siege of Taiz is one of the consequences of the presence and support provided by experts from Iran's IRGC and Lebanon's Hezbollah,” he said, describing it as evidence of foreign interference and backing for armed groups in the region.

“The Houthis may hold the microphone, but the decisions are made in Tehran, announced in Sanaa and paid for in Taiz, Hodeidah and other conflict-hit governorates,” he added.

Addressing residents in Houthi-controlled areas, Haidan accused the movement of drawing Yemenis into a war under the pretext of supporting Palestinians while leaving Iran to determine its course.

“This is not your war,” he said. “The Houthis announce it, Iran directs it, and you are the ones paying the price.”

The minister said the Interior Ministry would continue supporting national efforts under Operation Dawn of Yemen to restore state institutions and reclaim Sanaa.

Yemen has been embroiled in civil war since 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognized government.

A truce reached in 2022 collapsed in July, and the Houthis launched an offensive in September to capture the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and serves as a key passage for shipping between Europe and Asia through the Suez Canal.

The United Nations has reported that more than 1,600 people have been killed and over 300,000 displaced since fighting resumed.

The Houthis and Hezbollah are close allies of Tehran and members of what Iran calls the “Axis of Resistance,” a network of armed groups and political movements that has suffered major setbacks in recent years.

Following the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, launched on Feb. 28, Hezbollah carried out its first operation against Israel in more than 15 months, marking a renewed escalation in Lebanon. The Houthis, who had remained on the sidelines during the initial phase of the conflict, have since emerged as a significant actor, threatening the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and attacking Saudi Arabia, with potential repercussions for global oil prices.