FBI arrests Energy Department engineer for allegedly aiding Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen

The FBI arrested Department of Energy electrical engineer Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy on October 1, 2026, for allegedly providing material support to the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, including purchasing explosives materials and drone parts. Ellaboudy, 51, of Richland, Washington, allegedly traveled to Yemen in September 2025 to help improve Houthi communications, claiming to US officials he was on a government missile inspection mission, which his supervisor denied. He was recorded telling FBI informants he was smuggled into Yemen and sought government-level connections in Sanaa. The Houthis, designated a foreign terrorist organization by the US, seized Yemen's capital in 2014, forcing the government into exile. Renewed violence has killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands. Ellaboudy faces charges under federal law prohibiting material support to terrorist groups.