Yemeni arms dealers sell machine guns on X

Arms dealers in Yemen are openly using social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, to sell Kalashnikovs, pistols, grenades and rocket launchers.

These traders operate in the capital Sana’a and other areas controlled by the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel group considered a terrorist group by the US and Australian governments.

“It is unimaginable that they [the weapons dealers] not acting on behalf of the Houthis,” said former British Ambassador to Yemen Edmund Fitton-Brown, who now works for the Counter Extremism Project.

“Private sellers have attempted to profit from the provision, [for example] The Yemeni government will soon be shut down.”

An investigation by The Times newspaper found that some Yemeni accounts had blue checkmarks of verification.

Both The Times and the BBC have contacted X for comment but have so far received no response.

Most of the platform’s content moderators were laid off after new owner Elon Musk bought the company in 2022.

The ads are primarily in Arabic and target primarily Yemeni customers in a country where the number of guns often outnumbers the population by three times.

The BBC has found several examples online, offering weapons for sale in both Yemeni and Saudi riyals.

The words next to the weapon are designed to attract buyers.

“Superior craftsmanship and a top-notch warranty,” one ad read. “The Yemeni-made AK is your best choice.”

A demonstration video filmed at night shows the seller firing a 30-round magazine in full-auto mode.

Another store offers Pakistani-made sand-colored Glock pistols for around $900 each.

However, these ads are not hidden deep in the Dark Web, where guns and other illegal items are often traded, but they are displayed openly on X, where millions of people can access them.

Commenting on the issue, UK-based NGO Tech Against Terrorism has issued an urgent call to technology platforms to proactively remove pro-Houthi content on the internet and social media platforms.

The Houthis, a mountainous ethnic minority, seized power in Yemen in 2014, ousting the UN-recognized government.

Since then, a seven-year military campaign led by neighboring Saudi Arabia has failed to eliminate the group, while the country has descended into civil war.

In late 2023, the Houthis, with their powerful arsenal of drones and missiles, many supplied by Iran, targeted commercial and naval vessels in the Red Sea.

The Houthis said the move was in support of Palestinians in Gaza, but many of the ships had no connection to Israel.

US-led offshore maritime forces have failed to stop Houthi attacks on ships, causing catastrophic consequences for trade passing through Egypt’s Suez Canal.