Iran-backed Houthis allege discovery of a Mossad-CIA spy network in Yemen—an unverified claim timed to fuel anti-Israel propaganda ahead of Gaza escalations.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels announced Saturday they had uncovered what they dramatically called a “joint espionage network” run by the CIA, Mossad, Saudi intelligence, and Israel’s Military Intelligence Directorate. The unsubstantiated claim—released through the group’s propaganda channels—comes amid renewed Iranian efforts to stoke regional hostility against Israel and its allies.
According to the Houthi-run Interior Ministry, the alleged “spy network” operated under Saudi command with links to U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies. The statement asserted that the “operations room” was located in Saudi Arabia and directed smaller cells across Yemen, allegedly to collect intelligence on missile bases and weapons sites. The Houthis further claimed that operatives were “trained by American, Israeli, and Saudi officers” and used humanitarian aid organizations as cover for intelligence work.
However, no independent evidence supports these assertions. The so-called “confession videos” released by the Houthis feature visibly coerced detainees reading scripted statements—a familiar tactic in the group’s long record of psychological warfare and staged propaganda operations.
Analysts note that this latest claim mirrors a pattern of Iranian proxy narratives—blending anti-Israel disinformation with anti-Western rhetoric to justify internal crackdowns, especially after Israeli precision strikes killed key Houthi commanders, including Military Chief of Staff Muhammad Abd Al-Karim al-Ghamari, who succumbed to his injuries earlier this year.
The Houthis’ call for citizens to “resist enemy movements” and “defend Gaza” underscores how Yemen’s insurgency has become a propaganda extension of Iran’s regional strategy, seeking to frame Israel’s self-defense as aggression and mask Tehran’s own destabilizing footprint across the Middle East.
Israel, for its part, has repeatedly demonstrated restraint, targeting only verified Houthi launch sites and command centers used to attack Israeli territory. With over a dozen attempted missile and drone strikes intercepted by Israeli and U.S. forces since October 2023, Jerusalem’s message remains clear: any threat from Yemen will be met with precise, defensive action.
The “spy network” story, experts warn, is merely another chapter in Iran’s shadow war—a smokescreen for ongoing arms transfers and jihadist coordination designed to undermine Israel’s security and global standing.
