US announces sanctions against network responsible for financing Houthi rebels
Action targets head of the Currency Exchangers Association in Sana’a, as well as three exchange houses in Yemen and Turkey
The US Treasury Department on Thursday announced sanctions against individuals and groups which Washington has accused of facilitating the flow of Iranian financial assistance to Houthi rebels in Yemen who have been targeting Israel and international shipping lanes since October 7.
Among those designated is the head of the Currency Exchangers Association in Sana’a, and three exchange houses in Yemen and Turkey, the Treasury Department said.
The CEA president, Nabil Al-Hadha, has facilitated the transfer of millions of dollars to the Houthis at the direction of Sa’id al-Jamal, who has already been sanctioned by the US over his affiliation to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps elite Quds Force, the Treasury said.
The sanctions block access to US property and bank accounts and prevent the targeted people and companies from doing business with Americans.
Thursday’s action is the latest round of financial penalties meant to punish the Houthis. Earlier this month, the US announced sanctions against 13 people and firms alleged to be providing tens of millions of dollars from the sale and shipment of Iranian commodities to the Houthis in Yemen.
Brian E. Nelson, the Treasury’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said Thursday’s action “underscores our resolve to restrict the illicit flow of funds to the Houthis, who continue to conduct dangerous attacks on international shipping and risk further destabilizing the region.”
Nelson said the US and its allies “will continue to target the key facilitation networks that enable the destabilizing activities of the Houthis and their backers in Iran.”
The White House said last week that Iran has been “deeply involved” in the planning of attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels against commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have sporadically targeted ships in the region in the past, but the attacks have increased since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. Houthi leaders have insisted that Israel is their target.
Earlier this month, the White House also announced that it was encouraging its allies to join the Combined Maritime Forces, a 39-member partnership that exists to counter malign action by non-state actors in international waters, as it looks to push back against the Houthis.
The attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels have scared off some of the world’s top shipping companies and oil giants, effectively rerouting global trade away from a crucial artery for consumer goods and energy supplies that is expected to trigger delays and rising prices.
On Tuesday, the US announced that it had shot down 12 attack drones and five missiles launched by the Iran-backed Houthis, as the Israeli military said a fighter jet successfully shot down a “hostile aerial target” — believed to be a drone launched at Israel from Yemen — over the Red Sea.
