Yemen govt calls for global designation of Houthis as terrorist organization following ship attacks

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The US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Mason pulls alongside a fleet replenishment oiler in the Atlantic Ocean, July 17, 2021. (Reuters)
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In an undated photo released by Zodiac Maritime, the tanker Central Park is seen. (AP)
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Updated 27 November 2023
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Yemen govt calls for global designation of Houthis as terrorist organization following ship attacks

  • Yemen Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Haidan said America should reinstate the Houthi militia as a terrorist organization
  • Houthis launch two ballistic missiles at American destroyer USS Mason after it had intervened to prevent attempted hijacking of Israeli-linked tanker Central Park

AL-MUKALLA: Yemen’s internationally recognized government has requested the US and international community to label the Houthis as terrorists for jeopardizing shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

During a meeting with foreign diplomats in Riyadh on Sunday, Yemen Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Haidan said America should reinstate the Houthi militia as a terrorist organization 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 plea came as the US Central Command said on Monday that the Houthis had launched two ballistic missiles at American destroyer USS Mason soon after it had intervened to prevent the attempted hijacking of Israeli-linked tanker Central Park in the Gulf of Aden.

The missiles fell short of their target.

In 2016, the same naval ship was targeted by Houthi missiles in the Red Sea.

On Nov. 19, the Houthis seized the vehicle carrier Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea and pledged to capture and launch missile and drone strikes on Israeli-owned or controlled ships in revenge for Israel’s military operations in Gaza.

The Yemeni government said that the latest Houthi attacks on vessels in the Red Sea had bolstered its long-standing requests for the group to be blacklisted.

Faisal Al-Majidi, undersecretary at the Yemeni Ministry of Justice, told Arab News that the Houthis had been eligible for categorization for years, ever since they began planting thousands of landmines around the country, laying siege to cities, recruiting minors, blowing up opponents’ homes, and kidnapping people.

The Houthi missile strike on Aden International Airport in December 2020, that targeted an aircraft carrying Yemeni government ministers, was “enough to classify them as a terrorist organization not only by the United States of America but also by international institutions such as the United Nations, and the whole globe,” Al-Majidi said.

Last week, White House national security spokesman, John Kirby, said that the US considered reclassifying the Houthis as terrorists after the Galaxy Leader incident.

The Yemeni government said the classification would prevent Houthi officials from traveling around the world, put a squeeze on their financial resources, and hamper their aims to gain international legitimacy.

“The world would recognize that the Yemeni government is fighting a terrorist organization,” he added.

But critics claim that designating the group as terrorists would force the Houthis to reject peace talks and would impede the delivery of humanitarian aid and supplies to more than 70 percent of Yemen’s people who live in Houthi-controlled regions.

The same humanitarian concerns, raised by international aid groups, prompted US President Joe Biden’s administration to delist the Houthis as a terrorist organization in early 2021.


35 have been killed and 1,200 held in Iran’s economic protests

People walk as shops are closed during protests in Tehran's centuries-old main bazaar, Iran, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP)
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35 have been killed and 1,200 held in Iran’s economic protests

  • Demonstrations show no sign of stopping
  • Govt acknowledges hardships, urges dialogue

DUBAI: The death toll in violence surrounding protests in Iran has risen to at least 35 people, activists said on Tuesday, as the demonstrations showed no signs of stopping.

The figure came from the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which said more than 1,200 people have been detained in the protests, which have been ongoing for more than a week.
It said 29 protesters, four children and two members of Iran’s security forces have been killed. Demonstrations have reached over 250 locations in 27 of Iran’s 31 provinces,
The group, which relies on an activist network inside of Iran for its reporting, has been accurate in past unrest.
The semiofficial Fars news agency reported late on Monday that some 250 police officers and 45 members of the Guard’s all-volunteer Basij force have been hurt in the demonstrations.
 The authorities have acknowledged the economic hardships but accused networks linked to foreign powers of stoking the protests. 
On Tuesday, Iran’s police chief vowed to “deal with the last of these rioters.”
The shopkeepers’ protest continued on Tuesday in the bazaar, with about 150 people focusing on economic demands, Fars reported.
The protests have spread to some cities in western and southern Iran but do not match the scale of unrest that swept the nation in 2022-23 over the death of Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody for violating Iran’s dress code.
However, even though smaller, these protests have quickly expanded ‌from an economic ‌focus to broader frustrations, with some protesters chanting against the country’s clerical rulers.
The police chief, Ahmadreza Radan, was quoted on Tuesday by state media as saying they had drawn a distinction between protesters and rioters, the latter facing arrests on site or following identification by intelligence units.
“I pledge that we will deal with the last of these rioters. It is still time for those who were deceived by foreign services to identify themselves and draw on the Islamic Republic’s greatness,” Radan said.
Fars said ​Tuesday’s gathering of shopkeepers on Saadi street in Tehran ended without “expanding the police’s presence.”
Mohammad, 63, a jewelry shop owner in the bazaar, said there was a heavy presence of riot police and plainclothes security forces inside and around the area.
“They were forcing shopkeepers who were on strike to open their shops. I did not see it myself, but I heard there were clashes outside the bazaar and police fired tear gas,” he said by phone. 
Footage shared on Telegram on Tuesday appeared to show dozens of security forces on motorbikes patrolling the street and the unidentified person who took the clip can be heard saying the security forces had fired tear gas.
President Masoud Pezeshkian has promised reforms to help stabilize the monetary and banking systems and protect purchasing power.
The government has announced a subsidy reform, removing preferential currency exchange rates for importers in favor of direct transfers to Iranians to boost their purchasing ‌power for essential goods. The measure will come into force on Jan. 10.
The central bank chief was also replaced on Dec. 29.
The rial fell further to 1,489,500 on Tuesday, representing a 4 percent fall since the protests started.