Militant Corruption Allegations Plague Yemen's Immigration Office in Marib

Extensive financial and administrative irregularities, including alleged embezzlement and illegal fee collection, have been uncovered at the Immigration, Passports, and Nationality Authority branch in Marib Governorate, Yemen. The revelations have sparked calls for a formal investigation and accountability for those implicated.

Information suggests that the former branch director, Abdullah Al-Ahmari, is accused of establishing a scheme to collect cash fees outside the official financial system. This involved imposing additional charges on passport modification transactions, with the funds allegedly handed directly to his secretary, who is reportedly his wife's brother, without issuing receipts or depositing them into state coffers.

Sources indicate that fees of 50,000 Yemeni Riyals were levied for passport modifications for those issued in 2026, 40,000 Riyals for those issued in 2024 and 2025, and 30,000 Riyals for those issued in 2023. With an estimated 10,000 such transactions annually, this practice, ongoing since August 2025, could have generated approximately 250 million Riyals outside official channels.

Further allegations include the misappropriation of fees for indirect processing of transactions, such as exemptions from personal appearance, averaging 10 such cases daily at 10,000 Riyals per transaction, amounting to roughly 36 million Riyals annually. Additionally, fees for profession modifications, estimated at 50 transactions daily with 5,000 Riyals per transaction, totaling approximately 75 million Riyals annually, were allegedly not remitted. The branch's assets, including air conditioning units, refrigerators, and surveillance cameras, were reportedly seized for personal use, along with fuel allocations of approximately 3,000 liters of diesel and 3,000 liters of gasoline monthly, with suspicions of personal use and black market sales.

Administrative violations are also cited, including the appointment of relatives and friends to sensitive positions despite a surplus of staff, granting them broad authority. Relatives were allegedly included on payrolls, and illegal bonuses and incentives were disbursed, leading to employee discontent and operational disruptions. Passport issuance transactions without the applicant's presence reportedly pass through the branch secretariat, with reports of fees up to 1,500 Saudi Riyals for expedited processing outside legal procedures.

Photographs and documents obtained purportedly show the imposition of fines up to 50,000 Riyals on certain transactions without official financial documentation, with funds allegedly delivered directly to the director's secretariat. These documents, according to the reporting agency, warrant an investigation by relevant oversight and judicial authorities. Activists and human rights advocates have urged judicial and oversight bodies to promptly launch a transparent investigation into the pervasive corruption and exploitation of citizens, demanding accountability for all proven perpetrators.