
Houthi-linked dealers sell arms on X and WhatsApp, report says
The Houthis, an Iran-backed group of rebels who have controlled swathes of Yemen since 2014, are designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, Canada and other countries.
The report by the Washington DC-based Tech Transparency Project (TTP), which focuses on accountability for big tech, found Houthi-affiliated arms dealers have been openly operating commercial weapon stores for months, and in some cases years, on both platforms.
Meta, which owns WhatsApp, and X are scaling back their content moderation policies at a moment when experts say disinformation and illicit trafficking is on the rise.
The 130 Yemen-based X accounts and 67 WhatsApp business accounts identified by TTP offered high-powered rifles, grenade launchers and other military equipment for sale. Many of the arms dealers sold what appeared to be US-produced weapons, some emblazoned with 'Property of US Govt', as well as other western military weapons that were stamped with 'Nato'.
The report does not specify the arms dealers' customers but given the high price of the weapons, with some rifles being sold for as much as $10,000 (£7,500), it is likely buyers could be other militants.
X and Meta prohibit arms dealing on their platforms. Many of the arms dealers were subscribers to X Premium and users of WhatsApp Business – services that are supposed to be moderated.
Katie Paul, the director of TTP, said: 'X and WhatsApp both have policies against weapons sales but they are allowing arms traders linked to a US-designated terrorist group to traffic weapons on their platforms. In some cases these companies may be profiting off violations of their own policies that create risks for US national security.'
More than half of the X accounts listed their location as Sana'a, the Houthi-controlled capital of Yemen, and many regularly shared pro-Houthi content. Others sold weapons in containers marked with the Houthi logo, which states 'God is great, death to America, death to Israel, curse be upon the Jews, victory to Islam'.
Several accounts identified by TTP were subscribed to X Premium, which allowed them to post extended videos. One account featured an 'unboxing' video of an American M249 SAW, a light machine gun used by the US military. Other accounts used the tip feature, which allows X users to directly send donations to them.
X prohibits the use of its platforms by individuals who 'promote [terrorist organisations'] illicit activities', and says it does not allow terrorist groups to use its premium services.
Adverts appeared in the comments of posts selling weapons, suggesting X could be making money off the posts. In one instance, X placed an ad for a company selling Tesla accessories under a post where an arms dealer offered an 'all-American' Glock 17 handgun.
After Elon Musk bought X in 2022, he laid off about 80% of the company's trust and safety team, which was dedicated to content moderation. A previous report by TTP found that more than 200 accounts affiliated with terrorist and other sanctioned groups had blue ticks and were subscribed to X Premium.
A few of the Houthi-linked arms dealers interacted with Musk himself on X. When Musk posted a video of himself firing a Barret .50-caliber sniper rifle in September 2023, three arms dealers replied to him advertising their own guns, which included two AR-15s.
X declined to comment on the findings of TTP's investigation when approached by the Guardian.
Many of the arms dealers also used WhatsApp business accounts with the 'catalogue' feature, which allows a slideshow of products to be displayed, to showcase a catalogue of weapons.
One such account offered dozens of guns, including a Glock pistol wrapped in a custom skin showing images of the Lincoln Memorial, the White House and an American colonial-era soldier with the words 'Preserve, Protect, Defend' written on it.
WhatsApp says it reviews business account profiles and checks images before they are added to catalogues. It is unclear why the review process missed the images and accounts, many of which clearly identify themselves as arms dealers and link to Yemeni bricks-and-mortar gun shops in their biographies.
A spokesperson for WhatsApp said: 'If we identify or are made aware of US-designated terrorist organisations attempting to use our service, we will take appropriate action – including banning accounts – to comply with our legal obligations.'
WhatsApp then banned two accounts sent by the Guardian. It clarified that it did not make profit from the type of accounts in question, but it did not otherwise reply to questions as to how the company's review processes initially missed the arms dealers' accounts.
Meta has laid off thousands of employees in the last two years, many dedicated to safety. In January, Meta vowed to roll back content moderation, in what seemed to be an acknowledgment of Donald Trump's complaints of censorship on social media platforms.
TTP found that the vast majority of the Houthi-affiliated arms dealers' accounts on X and WhatsApp were created after the layoffs at both companies.
Paul said: 'Both Meta and X have the capital, the tools and the human resources to address this problem, but they're not doing so.'
Besides content moderation issues, TTP's findings also raised questions about global arms smuggling.
Taimur Khan, the head of Gulf regional operations at Conflict Armament Research, said tracing exactly how US-made weapons got to Houthi-held territory was difficult and there were several possible explanations.
Some of the weapons, particularly the American M4 rifles, were possibly from stocks supplied to Yemeni government forces before 2014 that were seized by the Houthis when they launched their insurgency.
Khan said other US weapons being sold by the accounts appeared 'to have been diverted more recently' and were made for civilian customers rather than soldiers. Those weapons could have been trafficked from the US to Yemen through the Gulf and elsewhere in the region or by other means, he added.
Non-American weapons are also smuggled into Yemen along other regional trafficking routes. They are also supplied directly to the Houthis via their allies, such as Iran.
Earlier this year, the US imposed sanctions on a Houthi arms smuggling network that was accused of procuring 'tens of millions of dollars'' worth of Russian weapons with the assistance of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.
'The arms that are being advertised in Houthi-controlled areas by weapon dealers, who are at some level linked to the Houthis, reflect all the different vectors of supply in Yemen,' Khan said.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Israeli military says it intercepted missile from Yemen toward Israel
CAIRO, July 25 (Reuters) - The Israeli military said on Friday it had intercepted a missile from Yemen towards Israeli territory. The IDF also said sirens were activated in several areas in Israel.


Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Rayner pushing Starmer to follow Macron and recognise Palestine
Angela Rayner is pressing Sir Keir Starmer to follow Emmanuel Macron and formally recognise a Palestinian state. The Deputy Prime Minister is understood to be '100 per cent' behind other Cabinet ministers pressuring the Prime Minister over the decision. A third of Labour MPs signed a letter on Friday saying it was time for 'immediate recognition'. It comes after Emmanuel Macron, the French president, pledged to recognise Palestine as a state at the next UN General Assembly in September. The Labour Government backs Palestinian statehood but has argued for months that it should be formally recognised at the right moment to further peace in the region. However, there is growing pressure in the party for a change to be made sooner. An ally of Ms Rayner told The Telegraph: 'She absolutely thinks it has to happen, 100 per cent. She realises the massive electoral consequences of it. 'We are in a much, much worse place now. We would lose 20 seats over the issue at the moment, not five.' At the last general election, Labour shed votes on the left to several independent pro-Gaza candidates. It is also likely to face further pressure after Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana launched their new hard-Left party. In a statement issued after a phone call on Friday evening, Mr Macron, the French President, Friedrich Merz, the German Chancellor and Sir Keir said the 'appalling scenes in Gaza are unrelenting' and appeared to criticise Israel over the 'starvation and denial of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people'. But Sir Keir has so far stopped short of saying when he will recognise a Palestinian state. Ms Rayner is one of several cabinet ministers understood to be increasingly pressing Sir Keir to take the move. Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, also wants the Prime Minister to pivot to a policy of immediate recognition, according to the Guardian. His view is shared by Hilary Benn, the Northern Ireland Secretary, and Shabana Mahmood, the Justice Secretary. Speaking on Thursday night, Ms Mahood said that while British recognition of Palestine would have 'multiple benefits' and send a 'strong message' to Israel, the immediate priority must be delivering aid to Gaza. Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, also wants to see Palestine recognised straight away, according to Bloomberg. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also repeated his calls on social media on Friday for a Palestinian state to be recognised by the UK. The Government's language towards the Israeli government has hardened considerably in recent weeks amid increasing humanitarian concern. Peter Kyle, the Science Secretary, told Sky News the situation was 'untenable', saying: 'Like any other person, I look at these images and I am deeply, deeply offended by them. 'The people of the region have been let down by successful generations of lots of world leaders but including particularly the leadership in the region itself, who have failed to deliver the kind of leadership that could have solved this problem.' Meanwhile, 221 MPs from across different political parties have urged the Government to recognise a Palestinian state ahead of a United Nations conference in New York next week. The MPs' letter, co-ordinated by Labour's Sarah Champion, chairwoman of the International Development Select Committee, said: 'We are expectant that the outcome of the conference will be the UK Government outlining when and how it will act on its long-standing commitment on a two-state solution; as well as how it will work with international partners to make this a reality.' Parliamentarians from Labour, the Conservatives, Lib Dems, SNP, Greens, Plaid Cymru, SDLP and independents are amongst those who signed the letter. Some 135 Labour MPs – one in three – signed the letter, indicating the strength of feeling on the matter across the backbenches in Sir Keir's party. In a video posted on social media on Friday, Mr Sarwar said: 'I have long supported the immediate recognition of the State of Palestine and continue to do so. But whilst pressing for that, we must see the end of the war right now. 'What we're seeing on our screens and in our social media feeds is intolerable, unjustifiable and heartbreaking. The mass starvation of a population, the innocent killing of innocent civilians and the destruction of infrastructure. 'That's why we need an immediate ceasefire – we need the free flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, we need to see the end of illegal occupation and the pathway to a two-state solution.' He called for the release of the 50 remaining Israeli hostages who are still being held in captivity by Hamas.


Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
UN aid chief demands evidence after Israel accuses staff of links to Hamas
UNITED NATIONS, July 25 (Reuters) - United Nations aid chief Tom Fletcher has demanded that Israel provide evidence for its accusations that staff with the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs were affiliated with Palestinian militants Hamas, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Friday. At a U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday, Israel's U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon declared that Fletcher and OCHA were no longer neutral and that hundreds of OCHA employees would undergo security vetting. Israel would also restrict OCHA visas to one month, he said. "Israel has uncovered clear evidence of Hamas affiliation within OCHA's ranks," Danon told the 15-member council without providing evidence. In a letter to the Security Council on Thursday, Fletcher said Danon's remarks were the first time any such concern had been raised and that the accusations were "extremely serious and have security implications for our staff." "I expect the Israeli authorities to immediately share any evidence that led them to make such claims to the council," Fletcher said. He noted that around the world OCHA engages with all parties to armed conflict to secure humanitarian access, press for the protection of civilians and promote respect for humanitarian principles, adding: "As Israeli authorities know, our contacts with Hamas have also supported hostage releases." Israel is committed to helping civilians and getting aid to those in need, Danon said, though he warned: "We will not work with organizations that have chosen politics over principles." The war in Gaza was triggered on October 7, 2023, when Hamas killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and took some 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, Israel's military campaign has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities, and reduced much of the enclave to ruins. "We must hold all parties to the standards of international law in this conflict," Fletcher wrote in his letter. "We do not choose between demanding the end to the starvation of civilians in Gaza and demanding the unconditional release of all the hostages." Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, denies it is responsible for shortages of food.