Yemen Accuses Houthis of Using Chemical Weapons in Taiz

“We warn the Houthi militia against persisting in targeting civilians or using any prohibited weapons,” Yemen’s armed forces stated on Friday, calling for an urgent investigation into reports that Houthi rebels used shells suspected to contain toxic substances in the southwestern Taiz province.

Field Reports and Alleged Chemical Weapons

The military command on the front lines received reports that the projectiles caused suffocation and fainting among those exposed. The armed forces urged the United Nations and other international bodies to document the effects of the substances, trace their origins, and determine who supplied them to the rebel group. Alongside the suspected gas usage, the military reported ongoing sniper operations, indiscriminate residential shelling, and a severe siege restricting access to water, food, and medicine for millions of citizens.

The allegations run parallel to separate claims from Yemen’s government regarding the illicit production of unconventional armaments. Moammar Eryani, Yemen’s Minister of Information, told The National that intelligence indicates the Houthis established a factory to produce toxic materials, utilizing components smuggled into the country under the supervision of Iranian experts. Eryani called on the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the UN to intervene and halt the alleged supply chain of chemical precursors.

Strategic Stakes in Contested Taiz

While Yemeni government forces maintain control over the center of Taiz, the surrounding Houthi siege has severely restricted supply lines. Government troops have attempted to repel rebel fighters from neighboring hills amid heavy resistance. Analysts note that seizing Taiz remains critical for the Houthis if they intend to advance further southward toward Aden and Lahj.

Amnesty International warned that the city is being pushed to the brink of a severe humanitarian disaster due to acute shortages of fuel and water, and urged the rebels to open the roads into Taiz. The broader conflict between the Houthis and Riyadh had remained largely dormant following a United Nations-brokered ceasefire in 2022. That relative calm fractured in July after the Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia for an airstrike on Sanaa International Airport, triggering a large-scale offensive that expanded rebel control across war-wracked Yemen and prompted intensified attacks targeting infrastructure deep inside Saudi Arabia.