The internationally designated terrorist group, the Houthis, has drawn condemnation for conducting a military exercise involving 150 children in the Qanawis Directorate of Al Hodeida province, western Yemen. The exercise, announced on Tuesday, May 28, 2024, was presented as a show of "support for the Palestinian people."

According to the Houthi-affiliated Yemeni news agency, Saba, the participants were "graduates of the first batch of open military training courses for the fourth phase." The exercise included "attack skills, combat techniques, shooting arts, and sniper training against simulated targets of enemy forces, as well as exercises on infiltration and forcing the enemy to surrender." Images released by the agency showed children wielding Kalashnikov rifles and firing live ammunition.

The use of child soldiers by the Houthis has been widely condemned by international organizations. On February 13, Human Rights Watch accused the group of "exploiting the Palestinian issue and the war in the Gaza Strip to recruit more children whom they send to the frontlines within the country."

The organization stated that the Houthis have recruited thousands of children, some as young as 13, into their armed forces since October 7. It noted a significant increase in child recruitment in recent months, coinciding with the fighting in Gaza. Human Rights Watch expressed concern that the Houthis are using the conflict to further their agenda, stating that their "only vision for the country is for everyone to fight for their cause."