Russia is recruiting hundreds of Yemeni Houthis for the war against Ukraine. 

The men were brought to Russia through a shadowy human trafficking operation, according to the Financial Times.

Yemeni recruits who travelled to Russia told the Financial Times they were promised well-paid jobs and even Russian citizenship. When they arrived in Russia, they were forcibly conscripted into the Russian army and sent to the front line in Ukraine.

U.S. diplomats say that the deal between the Kremlin and the Houthis is a sign of how far Russia is willing to go. According to analysts, few Houthis have been trained in Russia, despite the fact that Yemen is a poor country and suitable for recruiting mercenaries.

The Yemeni contracts examined by the FT include a company founded by prominent Houthi politician Abdulwali Abdo Hassan al-Jabri. The registration documents list the company as a travel agent and retail supplier of medical equipment and medicines.

The recruitment of mercenaries began in July. One of the contracts was dated July 3 and was signed by the head of the contractor selection centre in Nizhny Novgorod.

The FT contacted one of the mercenaries in Russia. He indicated that he was part of a group of about 200 Yemenis who had been conscripted into the Russian army in September. The man said he had been lured to Russia with promises of lucrative “security” and “engineering” jobs.

After a few weeks at the front, he hid with four other newly arrived Yemenis in a forest in Ukraine. According to the mercenary, one of the men tried to kill himself and was taken to the hospital.

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