Tensions are rising in the Middle East as the Houthis continue to attack ships
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels have again been classified as a terrorist group. In a video provided to USA TODAY by the Houthis militia, faces are blurred.
WASHINGTON – The Biden administration on Wednesday redesignated the Iran-backed Houthis as a “specially designated global terrorist group” following U.S.-led attacks on the Yemen-based militants that carried out waves of attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea had.
Since Thursday, the Pentagon, with initial military support from Britain, has launched three strikes with missiles and warplanes on sites used by the Houthis to fire missiles at commercial and naval ships transiting the Red Sea.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement announcing the return of Ansarallah, also known as Houthis, to the terrorist list that the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea “meet the textbook definition of terrorism.”
“They have endangered U.S. personnel, civilian sailors and our partners, jeopardized global trade and threatened freedom of navigation,” Sullivan said. “The United States and the international community are united in our response and condemn these attacks in the strongest terms.”
The Biden administration removed the Houthis from the list of foreign terrorist organizations in 2021. The Trump administration had given the Houthis the designation, which imposes financial sanctions.
The Houthis say their attacks are a response to Israel's invasion of Gaza. The Biden administration has sought to contain fighting in the Gaza Strip but has faced a series of skirmishes with Iranian-backed militant groups across the Middle East.
More: The US is carrying out a third attack on Houthi missile sites in Yemen
Before the formal designation, President Joe Biden said he considered the Houthis a terrorist group, telling reporters last Friday, “I think they are,” when asked if he was willing to use that designation.
Sullivan called the terrorist designation “an important tool to prevent the Houthis from financing terrorism,” including further restricting their access to financial markets and requiring them to be held accountable for their actions. He said the US would immediately reassess the designation if the Houthis stop their attacks in the Red Sea.
The designation will take effect in 30 days, which Sullivan said will allow the U.S. to ensure “robust humanitarian carve-outs are in place” so that measures target the Houthis rather than Yemen's population.
“The people of Yemen should not pay the price for the Houthis’ actions,” Sullivan said. “We are sending a clear message: commercial shipments to Yemeni ports, which the Yemeni people rely on for food, medicine and fuel, should continue and are not covered by our sanctions.”
In removing the Houthis from the terrorist list in 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the intent was to allow humanitarian aid to flow into civil war-torn Yemen.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., on Tuesday criticized the Biden administration for removing the terrorist designation in 2021 after The Associated Press first reported that redesignation was being considered.
“The Houthi rebels are trained and armed by the terrorist wing of the Iranian army,” Cotton said in a statement released by his office. “And they chant 'Death to America' as they attack American sailors and global trade.” Removing them from the list of terrorist organizations was a deadly mistake and another failed attempt to appease the Ayatollah.
“Joe Biden’s weakness and poor judgment continue to threaten our security.”
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Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said redesignating the Houthis as a global terrorist group is “a step in the right direction, but it comes far too late to have any practical benefit.” ” Effect.”
“It does not match the foreign terrorist organization designation that the Trump administration has put in place. Further Houthi attacks on merchant vessels or U.S. sailors should be met with a response that makes last week's attack in Yemen seem small in comparison,” Wicker said.
Declaring the Houthis a terrorist group is not expected to affect military operations against them, Pentagon press secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters on Wednesday.
Last Thursday, a US-led coalition attacked dozens of sites in Yemen. More than 150 bombs and missiles from ships, submarines and fighter aircraft hit missile defense and radar systems. Two smaller follow-up attacks targeted similar locations after the Houthis fired rockets and hit merchant ships in the Red Sea.
Two Navy SEALs were recently lost at sea when a ship carrying Iranian ballistic missile parts for the Houthis was intercepted.
The Red Sea is one of the world's busiest trade routes, connecting Asia to Europe via the Suez Canal. The Pentagon organized a naval coalition to protect these ships and fired dozens of missiles and drones before they hit ships.
The U.S.-led attacks deepen U.S. involvement in the Middle East, which has been shaken since Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people.
More: The US is attacking Houthi rebels in Yemen as part of a joint bombing campaign with Britain. How close are we to all-out war?