Yemen’s government has called for the Houthis to be designated as a terrorist organisation worldwide.
Yemen’s internationally recognised government has asked the United States and the international community to designate the Houthis as terrorists for endangering ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Yemen Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Haidan said on Sunday during a meeting with foreign diplomats in Riyadh that America should reclassify the Houthi militia as a terrorist organisation not only for threatening maritime traffic off Yemeni shores, but also for killing Yemeni children, abusing human rights, and acting as a proxy group for Iran.
The appeal came as the US Central Command announced on Monday that the Houthis had shot two ballistic missiles at the American destroyer USS Mason shortly after it intervened in the Gulf of Aden to thwart the attempted hijacking of the Israeli-linked tanker Central Park.
The missiles missed their aim.
The same naval ship was hit by Houthi missiles in the Red Sea in 2016.
In retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, the Houthis captured the vehicle carrier Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on November 19 and promised to capture and launch missile and drone strikes on Israeli-owned or controlled ships.
The Yemeni government said the new Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea backed the country’s long-standing calls for the group to be blacklisted.
According to Faisal Al-Majidi, undersecretary at Yemen’s Ministry of Justice, the Houthis have been eligible for classification for years, ever since they began laying siege to cities, recruiting minors, blowing up opponents’ homes, and kidnapping people.
According to Al-Majidi, the Houthi missile strike on Aden International Airport in December 2020, which targeted a plane carrying Yemeni government ministers, was “enough to classify them as a terrorist organisation not only by the United States of America, but also by international institutions such as the United Nations, and the entire globe.”
Following the Galaxy Leader incident, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby stated last week that the US contemplated reclassifying the Houthis as terrorists.
The Yemeni government claimed that the classification would make it difficult for Houthi officials to travel throughout the world, impose a strain on their financial resources, and stymie their efforts to achieve international legitimacy.
“The world would recognise that the Yemeni government is fighting a terrorist organisation,” he went on to say.
(With inputs from agencies)
