The Biden administration on Wednesday backtracked on one of its first foreign policy moves and redesignated Yemen’s Houthis as a terrorist organization due to the Iran-backed group’s ongoing attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
The Trump administration had previously designated the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT). However, under the Biden administration, the Houthis were delisted as Washington said it wanted to make it easier to get humanitarian aid into Yemen.
Since November, the Houthis have been targeting US warships and striking commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, which they claimed were heading to Israel or were Israeli-linked. The group sought to justify its recent attacks on ships, saying it was in response to Israel’s military operations in Gaza in the aftermath of Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.
Houthi attacks have forced companies, including major oil companies, to suspend transit through the Red Sea due to fear of attacks.
After repeated warnings to halt their attacks, the US and UK launched a joint military strike on Houthi targets in Yemen, followed by multiple US strikes in recent days.
Ahead of the designation announcement, a senior US administration official called the recent Houthi attacks “textbook” terrorist activity.
The Biden administration stopped short of relisting the Houthis as an FTO. US officials defended the SDGT listing as “appropriate at the moment” to pressure the Houthis by cutting off finances and calling out their terrorist behavior “in a clear manner.” The US also wants this designation to force the Houthis to “turn away from Iran,” said a senior administration official in a call with reporters ahead of the announcement.
The SDGT, officials said, would allow Washington to continue its efforts to resolve the years-long conflict in Yemen, which has pitted the internationally recognized government against the Iran-backed Houthis.
An FTO would prevent US visas from being issued to members of that group and would also need to be sent to Congress for review. The FTO would prevent the group from using US financial institutions. Any of the group’s assets would need to be seized and transferred to the Treasury Department, although officials say the Houthis don’t have any assets inside the US. An SDGT would also block fund. There are also different criminal prosecution standards under the FTO, including allowing victims of a terrorism attack to get blocked funds through courts.
Dialogue to continue
Nevertheless, senior administration officials say this designation will not prevent US diplomats or officials from engaging with the Houthis.
“Designating an entity or even an individual does not stop the United States government from continuing to talk to that individual or that entity.
We would urge the Houthis to cease their attacks, and we would like to be able to continue to think about our engagement in a way that is directed toward the durable peace in Yemen,” said a second administration official.
But addressing the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen, considered one of the worst in the world, was one of the main reasons the Biden administration reversed the Trump-era designation of the Houthis.
According to senior administration officials, the SDGT designation provides better flexibility to safeguard humanitarian aid flowing into Yemen.
Additionally, the designation will not go into effect for another 30 days, allowing the US to ensure the people of Yemen don’t pay the price for Houthi actions. Officials further said commercial shipments to Yemeni ports, where Yemeni people get food, fuel, and medicine, should continue and will not be affected by the sanctions.
During the 30-day grace period, US government officials said they would reach out to stakeholders providing humanitarian aid and other critical commodities to Yemen to ensure they could continue their work. Five broad licenses related to providing food, medicine and medical devices, fuel, personal remittances, ports and airports will be issued.
Additional authorizations could be made over this period of 30 days if deemed necessary for humanitarian reasons.
Houthis could be delisted again
As for the Houthis, the senior administration officials said the latest about-face was in a bid to get them to turn away from their “terrorist activities.”
If the Houthis do change their behavior, the officials said, the Biden administration would consider delisting them as a terror group once again.
The officials affirmed that the decision in 2021 to revoke the FTO and SDGT designations was the “correct step” due to the dire humanitarian situation in the country. Those revocations were intended to make sure US policies were not impeding the flow of badly needed staples and everyday necessities from getting to Yemenis.
However, the official said the situation has changed, pointing to the resumption of commercial shipping to Yemen.
“The recent attacks are unacceptable, and we can’t sit idly by and watch what the Houthis are doing in the Red Sea,” the second US official said.
Asked by Al Arabiya English if the Biden administration had reached out to its Gulf partners, the officials said they usually do so ahead of decisions, such as the one on Wednesday. “In particular, this [decision],” they said, was discussed with US partners in the region.
“If the Houthis cease their attacks, we can consider delisting their designation,” said a third official. “We will continue to monitor the situation and assess the group’s actions to inform our position going forward,” they added.
US commitment to resolving the conflict
The officials refused to describe or detail pushback within the State Department or the administration over the move to relist the Houthis. Al Arabiya English previously reported about opposition from senior US diplomats to move ahead with the decision out of fear that it could severely hamper efforts that have led to a fragile ceasefire in recent months.
As it relates to the ongoing war and efforts to reach a permanent ceasefire, the US remains committed to resolving the conflict and supports efforts by Saudi Arabia, Oman, the UN and others to do so.
“We are designating the Houthis again because of their terrorist activities, notably because of their continued and indiscriminate attacks on merchant vessels and international shipping in the Red Sea,” said the third official. “Such activities are incompatible with pursuing peace in Yemen and hinder further progress on implementing the roadmap agreement.”
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