ADEN, Yemen — Israel's success last month in covertly getting 19 Jews out of Yemen has raised some speculation among the press and Yemeni people about the successive waves of migration of Yemeni Jews from their homes in the southern Arabian peninsula to their alternative homeland of Israel.

The very existence of Yemeni Jews has been associated with the political conflict that has been fluctuating in Yemen for quite some time. However, Jewish migration to Israel, especially that which took place in March, aroused resentment among the Yemeni public and politicians alike.

Deeming the step as a kind of "declared complicity" with the ​​settlement of Jews in Palestine, many Yemenis opposed the Houthis' accommodation of the Jewish Agency's request to facilitate the departure. Houthis are now in control of the capital, Sanaa.

While the migration of Jews to Israel has been successful over the years, many people associate it with shady dealings. While some of these deals are well known, others remain shrouded in mystery. Yemeni political researcher Nabil al-Bakiri does not rule out the possibility that secret political deals have been made for decades with successive Yemeni governments.