Yemenis in Sanaa and other areas under Houthi control accused coup militias of targeting street beggars, looking to split their earnings from benefactors and funneling the funds into their war effort.
This follows oppression campaigns, also conducted by Houthis, against merchants, shop owners, charities and investors.
Poverty-stricken Sanaa has its streets flooded with beggars, some of whom lost their employment due to the war in Yemen.
Local sources in Sanaa told Asharq al-Awsat that Houthis are forcing crowds of beggars to pay shares of money they collect in exchange for allowing them to remain in the streets to earn a living from passers-by.
Sources say that what Houthis are doing is unprecedented and that their policies spare no rich or poor.
A number of beggars roaming the streets of Hadda, Al-Zubayri and Al-Tahrir reported to Asharq Al-Awsat that Houthi militants pass by daily to collect 20% of their earnings.
Salem, one of Sanaa’s beggars, said that he collects daily between 5,000-10,000 Yemeni rials ($10 to $20) after spending 18 long hours on the streets. He spends the money to purchase basic living necessities for his family, but he is now forced to give up 20% of the money collects to Houthi militants.
An official at the Houthi-run Ministry of Social Affairs blamed Houthis for the spread of the begging phenomenon in the past five years.
The official, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, said that the Houthi policy of plundering funds from citizens, freezing the salaries of public servants and denying the people access to international aid is the reason behind the spike in the number of beggars on the streets.
Social Affairs Ministry employees, according to the official, around a month ago, led field campaigns targeting the streets and neighborhoods where beggars are found. They recorded the names and information of beggars.
