The television station owned by the Houthi rebel group in Yemen has been registered as a company in London for more than 10 years, The National can reveal.
Al Masirah TV uses a front company with a mailing address located at a cafe to maintain a toehold in the UK capital. One of the company's directors is listed as director general of the Yemeni station.
Its presence, and that of a series of other companies, has raised concerns over illicit funding, visa facilitation and intelligence gathering on political rivals. An intelligence expert told The National the set-up aids Houthi representatives with travel to the UK, providing plausible cover to conduct potential surveillance operations.
Jonathan Hackett, a former US Marine Corps intelligence officer, said it would enable access for Houthis who need visas to come to the UK.
“Using this facility as that cover makes it a lot easier in an immigration interview to be able to get a visa, because you have a plausible explanation, you have an overt reason for being in the country,” said Mr Hackett, who has also held positions at the US Defence Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency.
“They're definitely not visiting to see a museum for cultural reasons.
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