A view of the British-owned and Japanese-operated cargo ship Galaxy Leader, which was reported to have been captured by Houthis in the southern Red Sea, in this handout image taken near Queensland, Australia November 27, 2018. Owen Foley/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
On Thursday, the US Treasury Department imposed fresh counterterrorism restrictions on people and organizations connected to the Houthis, who get support from Iran.
Thirteen people and organizations were singled out by the US for supplying the Houthis in Yemen with money obtained from the sale of Iranian goods. According to State Department spokesman Matt Miller, “US warships operating in international waters have also been threatened by attacks launched from Houthi-controlled areas.”
Ballistic missiles and other projectiles have been shot down by US warships in the region after heading in their direction, Pentagon officials have said. However, the US officials have stopped short of saying the Houthis were targeting US assets in the region. Houthi attacks have reached Israel. The Houthis have also shot down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone – which costs a little over $30 million – off the coast of Yemen.
Miller added that the Iranian regime’s support to the Houthis had enabled unprovoked attacks on civilian infrastructure in Israel and on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. He said these attacks would increase regional instability, and risk broadening the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said the Houthis continue to receive funding and support from Iran. He added: “The result is unsurprising: unprovoked attacks on civilian infrastructure and commercial shipping, disrupting maritime security and threatening international commercial trade.”
In October, the US military destroyed several missiles and drones that it says were launched by the Houthis, heading north and potentially targeting Israel.
The Pentagon said the USS Carney destroyer was in the northern Red Sea at the time when it made the decision to foil the Houthi attacks.
The Biden administration removed the Houthis and group officials from terror blacklists shortly after President Joe Biden took office. Last year, Biden said he was reconsidering designating the group following multiple attacks on the UAE’s capital of Abu Dhabi.
