The Iran-backed Houthis have reportedly detained employees of the state-run Yemeni Oil Company and enforced a complete communications blackout on residents of Kamaran Island in Yemen’s Hodeida province, according to a local rights official.
Ghaleb Al-Qudaimi, director of the Human Rights Office in Hodeida, stated on Tuesday that Houthi militia arrested several oil company employees, including public relations head Ahmad Talib Khan and deputy director of commercial affairs Dr. Rami Ali Hanab.

In a statement, Al-Qudaimi also revealed that Kamaran Island has been turned into a “closed prison,” with residents barred from leaving or communicating externally after all contact methods were severed. He reported that dozens of island residents have allegedly been subjected to enforced disappearance, accused by the Houthis of spying for the United States following intensified U.S. airstrikes, with over 80 reported recently.

Human rights groups have documented an increase in arbitrary detentions in Houthi-controlled areas, particularly Sana’a, Sa’dah, and Hodeida. Civilians are reportedly being targeted under accusations of espionage for the U.S. amid ongoing U.S. air operations since mid-March.

A report by the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms, reviewed by Barran Press, indicated that the Houthis raided 532 homes and businesses and detained at least 212 individuals between April 1 and April 20 across several provinces. The report alleged that the group is intensifying internal repression to compensate for battlefield losses from U.S. airstrikes targeting their military infrastructure.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on April 27 that it has conducted over 800 strikes against the Houthis since mid-March in response to attacks on international shipping.