Sources reveal to "Yemeni Youth": A close relationship between Fares Manaa and leaders in the Transitional Council to facilitate the smuggling of weapons from the port of Aden

Sources revealed a special relationship between the arms dealer close to the Houthis, Fares Manaa, and senior leaders in the Southern Transitional Council supported by the UAE, to facilitate the arms smuggling operation in which "Manaa" is active in Yemen and the Horn of Africa.

Informed sources told "Yemeni Youth" about a close relationship between the arms dealer close to the Houthis, Fares Manna, and the UAE through the Transitional Council, with the aim of facilitating the arrival of weapons from the ports of Djibouti to the port of Aden.

According to sources who spoke to the program "From the Other Side" presented by colleague Abdullah Dubla, "the arms dealer Fares Mannaa visits Aden on a regular basis, and the UAE provides him with full security protection through factions in the Southern Transitional Council."

Faris Manna is one of the most prominent arms smugglers and dealers in Yemen and the Horn of Africa. He is a minister in the previous Houthi government and was a former governor of Saada, the stronghold of the Houthi group. He is wanted internationally and has been subject to sanctions by the Security Council.

Fares Manaa in Aden

The sources indicated that "the arms dealer close to the Houthis, Faris Manaa, has visited Aden dozens of times over the past year and a half, and during his stay in the city he resides in a villa designated for him in the Al-Mamdara area."

She stressed that "influential figures within the Transitional Council, headed by Aidarous al-Zubaidi and Shallal Shaye, are linked to "Faris Manaa" in smuggling and trading weapons and passing them from Aden to other destinations such as Sudan and Somalia under strict Emirati protection."

The sources pointed out that "the port of Aden is run by individuals from Al-Dhale' and relatives of Aidarous Al-Zubaidi, and has become a vital outlet for the flow of various weapons through the merchant Manna', and many of these deals reach the Houthi militia."

Manaa is active in the arms trade, and during the past years of the war in Yemen, the Houthi group granted him the position of Minister of State in its government in Sana’a, which is not internationally recognized, and he has extensive relations in the arms trade and smuggling.

At the beginning of this year, the Saudi newspaper Al-Watan revealed disagreements between Fares Manaa and leaders of the Houthi group, which led to his escape from Yemen. The Houthis asked him to clear his name as a minister in the militia government, which he refused, and demanded that everyone be held accountable. He said, “There were ministers (from the Houthi militia) who did not own a single riyal, and now own palaces, cars, real estate, and financial assets.”

International smuggling

In 2010, the United Nations included "Faris Mana'a" in its sanctions. His name was also included in the Security Council's list of arms smugglers for the Al-Shabaab Mujahideen Movement in Somalia, which is classified as a terrorist group in the United States of America. The former Yemeni government also included his name in the blacklist of arms smugglers to Yemen.

According to the UN Security Council, "Faris Mohammed Mana'a has been directly or indirectly involved in the supply, sale or transfer of arms or related materiel to Somalia, in violation of the arms embargo."

In October 2009, the Yemeni government published a blacklist of arms dealers headed by Manna, as part of its efforts to stem the flow of weapons into the country, which is said to have more weapons than people. Fares Manna is described as one of the major arms dealers.

Since mid-2008, Yemen has been a hub for illicit arms shipments to the Horn of Africa, particularly arms shipments by ship to Somalia. Fares Mana'a has reportedly been involved in sending shipments to Somalia on numerous occasions, according to the UN Security Council.