On April 6, 2021, a fighter fighting for Yemen's Saudi-backed government held a position against Huthi rebels from Yemen's northeastern Province of Marib. STR/AFP via Getty Images
Prosecutors say that two ex-German soldiers had planned to form a mercenary force in Yemen to combat the ongoing civil war.
They wanted to recruit 150 men, so they offered $10,000 per week to join their private army.
According to the BBC, ex-soldiers reached out to Saudi government agencies for funding.
According to prosecutors, two former soldiers from Germany set up a mercenary unit in which recruits would receive $10,000 per week to help in the ongoing civil war in Yemen.
According to the BBC, Arend-Adolf G, and Achim A are facing terrorism charges in Germany. They are accused of allegedly plotting to recruit 150 men (ex-police officers, soldiers) and offer their services to Saudi Arabia's government.
Prosecutors said they intended to pay each recruit an average of 40,000 dollars per month for their services.
Former soldiers were accused of asking Saudi agencies for money to fund illegal missions in Yemen. According to the BBC, the prosecutors stated that their outreach efforts were in vain.
Yemen is currently in civil war between Saudi-backed progovernment forces and Houthi rebels.
UNICEF estimates that more than 10,000 children were injured or killed in war-torn Yemen. According to UNICEF, the conflict has created the most severe humanitarian crisis in the world with more than two-thirds needing aid.
An event to support the Houtis fighters against the government of Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi. It took place in Sana'a on February 4, 2021. Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images
According to the BBC, the Germans were accused by the BBC of creating the paramilitary unit in 2021. They also tried to recruit at most seven people.
Deutsche Welle reported that the mercenary force would have been working to seize areas in Yemen held by the rebel armed Houthi forces. According to the broadcaster, the suspects had also planned for the unit's participation in other conflicts.
According to prosecutors, the "ringleaders" knew that the mercenaries would need to kill civilians as well.
According to Spiegel, Germany's Military Counter-Intelligence Service was tipped about the plans.
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One of the men was arrested in Munich and the other in Germany's south-western Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district, the BBC reported.
They will appear in court Wednesday.
Business Insider has the original article.
