Russia Supplying Stolen Ukrainian Grain to Houthi Regime

The investigation focused on the Zafar ship, which loaded grain in the port of occupied Sevastopol in early October.

Russia is likely supplying Ukrainian grain to the Houthi regime, which controls most of Yemen, according to an investigation by Bellingcat and Lloyd’s List, the CFTS portal reports.

The investigation focused on the Zafar ship, which loaded grain in the port of occupied Sevastopol in early October. It arrived at the port of As-Salif in western Yemen in mid-November, having previously docked at a port in the African state of Djibouti on the other side of the Red Sea.

All ships bringing goods into Houthi-controlled ports are mandated to stop in Djibouti for inspection by the United Nations Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM) for Yemen. The fact that the ship, which came from illegally occupied Sevastopol, passed a UNVIM inspection “raises questions for the UN.”

Earlier this year, Zafar made an identical voyage from occupied Sevastopol and successfully passed a UNVIM inspection.

“The port of Sevastopol is currently under United States and United Kingdom sanctions, while the terminal that the Zafar docked at in Sevastopol is under European Union sanctions. Importantly, however, there are no UN sanctions on the Port of Sevastopol or Russia,” Bellingcat wrote.

Investigators admit that they have no information about the origin of the grain that the Zafar was transporting to Yemen. However, they noted that some farmers in occupied eastern Ukraine have previously accused Russian forces of stealing grain that was subsequently exported.