Iran-backed Houthis accuse CIA and Mossad of running spy ring against them from Saudi Arabia

The Houthi terrorist organization in Yemen, officially known as "Ansar Allah," announced on Saturday that it had uncovered a wide-ranging spy network during a "qualitative security operation," which the group claims operates as an “intelligence coalition” between the CIA, the Mossad, the Military Intelligence Service and Saudi intelligence. 

According to the statement from the Houthis' Interior Ministry, the network's "operations room" was based in Saudi Arabia, and it operated dozens of small cells throughout Yemen, which operated independently but were directly linked to it. 

The Houthis called the security operation "And the Plot of Those Will Fail,” according to Yemeni news site Mareb Press, and claimed that the arrest of network members and confiscation of equipment came after “meticulous monitoring and follow-up operations that lasted several months.” 

The Yemeni news agency, which is not affiliated with the Ansar Allah group, said the photos presented by the Interior Ministry as evidence of the foreign intelligence operation revealed the “naiveté and deception of the Houthi militia.” 

The news agency said many of the objects presented by the Houthi Ministry of Interior resembled materials used by the terror group on the front lines against Yemeni and Saudi forces.  

The Houthi statement claimed that the operations room supplied the independent cells with advanced technological surveillance equipment allegedly provided by Israel and the United States. These systems, according to the group, included state-of-the-art monitoring devices used to collect information on sensitive sites in Yemen – including military and security installations, ballistic missile and drone production facilities, and launch locations – capabilities the Houthis themselves rely on for attacks against targets in Israel.

The Houthis claimed that “the enemy is trying to undermine internal security and stability and harm the military effort supporting Gaza.” 

The terror group also claimed that the cell members were trained by intelligence officers from the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia in Saudi territory. 

Mareb Press cited a source working at a UN office in Yemen, who said that the group controls the entry of all the technical equipment used by UN offices and agencies within Houthi-controlled areas, indicating the materials presented could be items belonging to the Ansar Allah movement. 

Saudi-affiliated news agency Asharq al-Awsat reported that the Houthis, still reeling from the U.S.–Israeli intelligence breach that killed several of their commanders and exposed a number of covert sites, appear to be compensating by promoting fake security “achievements” and staging fabricated arrest operations.

The news agency said the Houthi statement announcing the security operation and the arrests, “has its primary goal of restoring the confidence of its supporters in its intelligence capabilities, which have been severely damaged after the recent strikes.” 

Ansar Allah claimed that the spy network's exposure was the result of monitoring, analysis, and surveillance operations, and promised to release "a significant portion of the information and details” of the network's operation, along with “video confessions from members" of the network.