Assassination Mercenaries in Yemen: Western Investigations Uncover Details of a Secret Emirati Program to Eliminate Yemeni Figures Using American and “Israeli” Contractors
Recent investigative reports reopen the file of assassinations carried out in Aden since 2015, revealing a network of hired killers run by the UAE with direct funding and outside any legal oversight.
NYN | Reports and Analyses
Recent journalistic investigations, republished by a U.S. website specializing in military and intelligence affairs, have revealed new details regarding the United Arab Emirates’ involvement in recruiting American and “Israeli” mercenaries to carry out systematic assassinations inside Yemen, as part of a secret program that began in the early years of the war.
The specialized website SOFREP reported that the investigations renewed focus on an assassination program launched in 2015, during which Abu Dhabi relied on foreign operatives—most of them former U.S. special forces officers—to conduct targeted killings in the city of Aden and its surroundings.
A Private Company to Manage Extrajudicial Killings
The report pointed to an investigative exposé conducted by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Arabic) and published in 2024, which revealed that the program was carried out through a private military company known as the “Spear Operations Group,” led by Abraham Golan, a former “Israeli” commando.
The group included members of U.S. special forces, among them former Green Berets and U.S. Marines, who were contracted to carry out targeted assassinations in exchange for large sums of money.
Direct Funding and Millions of Dollars
According to the investigation, the mercenaries received an initial payment of approximately $1.5 million from an Emirati officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel named Ahmed Al-Mahmoudi. Total payments linked to the program reached nearly $17 million, according to payroll records reviewed by investigators.
Assassination Lists and Civilian Targets
The unit was tasked with eliminating individuals classified by Emirati intelligence as “threats,” including religious scholars, political activists, and figures opposed to Emirati influence in southern Yemen.
The report quoted former operators as saying that the operations were conducted without any formal rules of engagement, judicial oversight, or legal arrest warrants. Targets were placed on pre-prepared lists, and assassinations were deliberately carried out outside the framework of the law.
Killing Methods in Densely Populated Neighborhoods
The investigation explained that the assassinations were carried out using sniper rifles, silenced pistols, drive-by shootings, and motorcycle attacks, often inside densely populated residential neighborhoods, directly endangering civilians.
Assassinations Continued After the Mercenaries’ Withdrawal
The report revealed that the program did not end with the withdrawal of foreign contractors. Emirati personnel and loyal local forces continued to carry out similar operations after receiving direct training from the mercenaries, and the liquidation of critics and figures linked to the Southern Transitional Council continued.
Such operations were often attributed to “unknown local cells,” while the investigations confirm that they operated with Emirati support and direction.
Proxy Violence and Political Denial
The report concluded that this case exposes a dangerous shift in the nature of the aggression against Yemen toward fragmented, proxy-managed violence, allowing involved states to carry out targeted killings while maintaining a wide margin of political deniability.
The case also raises embarrassing questions for the U.S. administration regarding oversight and legal accountability, and the use of former American soldiers as hired tools in foreign wars serving the interests of Washington’s allies.
