The United States Department reimposed the “foreign terrorist organisation” designation for the Yemen-based Houthi group. The redesignation fulfilled an order announced by President Donald Trump shortly after he assumed office.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the department had reinstated the designation. It carries with it sanctions and punishments for anyone providing “material support” for the group.
“Since 2023, the Houthis have launched hundreds of attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, as well as U.S. service members defending freedom of navigation and our regional partners,”
Rubio stated.
“Most recently, the Houthis spared Chinese-flagged ships while targeting American and allied vessels.”
The group have attacked more than 100 merchant ships in the critical trade passage with missiles and drones since the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023. In January, the group declared that it would determine its attacks in the Red Sea corridor to only Israeli-affiliated vessels after a ceasefire started in the Gaza Strip. Still, it cautioned wider assaults could resume if needed.
Trump’s first Republican government had likewise designated the Houthis in its final days, but President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration had cancelled the designation over concerns it would badly impact the delivery of aid to Yemen, which was supposed to be facing one of the world’s direst humanitarian concerns.
The White House stated in January that Biden’s “weak policy” had led to the Houthis attacks on US Navy warships dozens of times, hitting commercial ships more than 100 times and striking civilian infrastructure in partner countries.
“Under President Trump, it is now the policy of the United States to cooperate with its regional partners to eliminate the Houthis’ capabilities and operations, deprive them of resources, and thereby end their attacks on US personnel and civilians, US partners, and maritime shipping in the Red Sea,”
the White House expressed.
Rubio indicated in his statement that such a situation was not a problem anymore, stating that the U.S. would no longer “tolerate any country engaging with terrorist organisations like the Houthis in the name of practicing legitimate international business.”
In addition to the “foreign terrorist organisation” announcement, the State Department’s Rewards for Justice program reported that it would award $15 million for information that leads to the elimination of Houthi financing.
The U.N. has projected that more than 19 million people across Yemen will need humanitarian assistance this year as many deal with climate shocks, malnutrition, cholera and the economic effects of war.
