Lahj (South24 Center)

The Security Belt Forces in Yemen's southern Lahj Governorate announced on Sunday (November 9) that they had foiled an attempt to smuggle a truckload of advanced military equipment destined for the Houthi group.

A statement from the command explained that personnel at a checkpoint in the Al-Husseini area intercepted a truck carrying two containers containing Furuno marine radar systems - made in Japan, spare parts used for operating drones, and Motorola wireless communication devices believed to be intended for military purposes.

The statement added that authorities confiscated the shipment and detained the driver along with several suspects. An investigation has been initiated to identify the parties behind the smuggling and the shipment's route before reaching Houthi-controlled areas.

The Security Belt Forces stated that this operation is part of a security campaign aimed at preventing the smuggling of military equipment to the Houthis, who have been engaged in confrontations with government forces on multiple fronts for years.

Southern Yemen has witnessed an increase in recent months in smuggling attempts involving equipment and materials used in manufacturing weapons.

In a separate incident, the Yemeni Coast Guard announced on Saturday that it had intercepted two vessels arriving from Djibouti carrying advanced communication equipment, approximately 70 nautical miles west of Aden port, while en route to the coastal area of Ras Al-Arah—described by authorities as an illegal landing point.

The Coast Guard Authority stated that naval teams confiscated 14 containers holding high-tech networking devices manufactured by Huawei that were not listed in the shipping documents, adding that the crew had been detained and an investigation into the incident had been initiated.