US govt official arrested on charges of supporting Iran-backed Houthis, buying bomb-making materials

Ellaboudy travelled to Yemen in September last year with the stated aim of helping the Houthis improve their communications capabilities.

A US Energy Department electrical engineer has been arrested for allegedly providing material support to Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels, including by purchasing materials used in homemade explosives and drones and traveling to Yemen, the Justice Department said.Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy, 51, of Richland, Washington, was arrested Thursday and is scheduled to make his first court appearance Friday, the Associated Press reported, citing the Justice Department. Court records did not list an attorney who could speak on his behalf.According to the FBI, Ellaboudy sought to help the Houthis improve their communications capabilities and traveled to Yemen in September last year. He allegedly used a passport issued while he was working with the US Army Corps of Engineers to travel to Oman before entering Yemen.After returning to the US, Ellaboudy allegedly told Customs and Border Protection officials that he had been in Oman on a work trip and was part of a US government mission inspecting missile defence systems.His supervisor, however, told investigators he was unaware of Ellaboudy making any international trip or of any Energy Department missile inspection programme involving him, according to an FBI affidavit.Investigators began looking into Ellaboudy after learning that he had purchased precursor chemicals, including acetone and sodium bisulfate, that can be used in homemade explosives, as well as components used in drones, the FBI said.He also allegedly communicated with several FBI informants, including one posing as a Houthi colonel, and offered advice and assistance involving communications equipment.Ellaboudy allegedly told informants that he had been smuggled into and out of Yemen and wanted to reach the capital, Sanaa, to establish government-level contacts. He was ultimately unable to reach the city, according to the FBI.Ellaboudy has been charged under a US law that prohibits providing material support to organisations designated as foreign terrorist organisations. The Houthis are designated as such by the US.If convicted, Ellaboudy could face up to 20 years in prison, according to the Justice Department.The Houthis seized control of Sanaa and parts of Yemen in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention the following year in support of the country’s internationally recognised government. The conflict has continued to fuel violence and displacement in the country.