A fuel crisis in Sana'a has triggered accusations of corruption against Houthi leadership. The Houthi-controlled Yemen Oil Company  acknowledged on Saturday complaints of vehicle malfunctions after refueling and announced it deployed technical teams to investigate. Yet, the statement avoided pinpointing the cause, widely believed to be a shipment of substandard Iranian fuel imported via Hodeidah port.

Houthi Corruption Allegations Surface

Critics, including activists and lawmakers, have accused Houthi leaders of importing adulterated Iranian fuel to boost profits. Ahmed Saif Hashed, a Sanaa-based member of Yemen’s House of Representatives, demanded transparency, challenging the Houthis to name the importer behind the defective fuel. In an X post, Hashed slammed the Oil Company’s evasiveness, declaring, “The refusal to identify the importer and hold higher authorities accountable reveals a mafia strangling Sanaa’s economy.” He added that while adulterated fuel has long been an issue, its scale under Houthi rule has hit new highs.


Pro-Houthi activist Nabil Saeed called for reversing the Oil Company’s privatization, arguing it has ceded control of vital resources to profiteering merchants. In a Facebook post seen by Barran Press, Saeed criticized the flotation policy—originally a response to the blockade—for enabling traders to monopolize oil, inflate prices, and import tainted fuel. “The Oil Company must reclaim its public role,” he wrote. “Merchants now dictate sky-high prices and dump polluted oil on citizens, who bear the fallout.”

Public Fury at Oil Company’s “Laughable” Response
The company’s vague handling of the crisis has drawn sharp backlash. Yasser Musleh Al-Lozi mocked its statement as “absurdly comical,” singling out its cryptic warnings about “non-compliant droplet defectors” and its refusal to own up to the damage. “Are citizens to blame for trusting the fuel, or are secret saboteurs targeting our engines?” Al-Lozi wrote. “Or have our vehicles conspired to break down together?”

Iranian Fuel Shipment Under Scrutiny

Journalist Bassem Al-Jannani tied the crisis to a tanker, Love, which arrived at Hodeidah on December 26, 2024, carrying 60,639 tons of fuel—a notably large haul. After two months, on February 20, 2025, the tanker began unloading its cargo, which was pumped directly into the market due to the lack of storage facilities. Al-Jannani noted that vehicle malfunctions began within weeks of the shipment being distributed. He also implicated a company called Taj Oscar, allegedly linked to influential Houthis within the Oil Company, in facilitating the import and distribution of the substandard fuel.

Yemeni Government Slams Houthi Exploitation

Moammar Al-Eryani, Yemen’s Minister of Information, Culture, and Tourism in the internationally recognized government, denounced the scandal as a stark example of Houthi corruption. In a statement via Yemen’s Saba news agency, he accused the Iran-backed group of peddling low-grade Iranian oil to fleece citizens. “The Iranian regime supplies the Houthis with impure fuel, which they sell at inflated prices, damaging engines and saddling Yemenis with repair costs,” Al-Eryani said. He cited past instances of contaminated Iranian oil, accusing figures like Houthi leader Mohammed Abdulsalam of profiting while Yemenis face deepening poverty and service shortages. “This crisis lays bare the militia’s callous pursuit of illicit wealth at the expense of suffering citizens,” he added.