Political analysts and American lawmakers warned about a US plan to label the Houthi Ansarullah movement a \u201cforeign terrorist organization\u201d, saying it would aggravate the already dire humanitarian situation in Yemen caused by years of a Saudi-led war and blockade.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, newsmagazine Foreign Policy reported that the US State Department was considering the designation as part of President Donald Trump\u2019s \u201cmaximum pressure\u201d campaign against Iran, according to Press TV.<\/p>\n
The announcement, The Washington Post said, is expected to come in December.<\/p>\n
Speaking to the Doha-based Al Jazeera broadcaster on Saturday, Hassan el-Tayyab, a Middle East policy lobbyist at the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), said the designation would make it increasingly difficult for aid organizations to deliver much-needed aid to the Yemenis living in northern areas controlled by the Houthis.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very scary prospect as the country teeters on the edge of famine,\u201d he said. \u201cThey would risk being hit with secondary sanctions and other penalties. It\u2019s going to make delivering critical humanitarian assistance nearly impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tayyab also warned that the blacklisting of the Houthis could embolden Saudi Arabia and impede international efforts toward resolving the Yemen conflict.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would have catastrophic impacts on the world\u2019s largest humanitarian crisis and hamper UN-led efforts to secure a cease-fire deal and have a negotiated settlement,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Shireen al-Adeimi, an assistant professor at Michigan State University, described the designation as one of the two last-minute measures by the Trump administration meant to strengthen Saudi forces and put pressure on the Houthis.<\/p>\n
The other measure, she added, is a planned $23.3-billion sale of weapons, including F-35 aircraft and drones, to the UAE which is a key partner of the Riyadh regime in the military aggression against Yemen.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is just one more action that they\u2019re trying to get through in order to apply pressure, but yet again it\u2019s going to affect civilians,\u201d Adeimi told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n
Joe Biden is set to take office on January 25 as the 46th US president. The Democrat has vowed to end support for the Yemen war, penalize human rights violations and treat Saudi Arabia like \u201cthe pariah that they are\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know of course that this war began under the Obama-Biden administration, but since then, the Democratic Party has come to understand, at least optics-wise, that this doesn\u2019t look good and this needs to end,\u201d Adeimi said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a group of eight Democratic Party lawmakers warned US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Ambassador to UN Kelly Craft that the possible measure against the Houthis could worsen Yemen\u2019s humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n
In an open letter, the legislators led by Ted Deutch of Florida and Ro Khanna of California said “a blanket designation will dramatically increase risks associated with transferring humanitarian funds to Yemen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia launched a devastating military aggression against Yemen in March 2015 in collaboration with a number of its allied states, and with arms support from the US and several Western countries.<\/p>\n
The aim was to return to power a Riyadh-backed former regime and defeat the Houthi Ansarullah movement that has taken control of state matters.<\/p>\n
The war has failed to achieve its goals, but killed tens of thousands of innocent Yemenis and destroyed the impoverished country\u2019s infrastructure. The UN refers to the situation in Yemen as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n
On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Yemen was on the verge of \u201cthe worst famine\u201d the world has seen for decades.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Political analysts and American lawmakers warned about a US plan to label the Houthi Ansarullah movement a \u201cforeign terrorist organization\u201d, saying it would aggravate the already dire humanitarian situation in Yemen caused by years of a Saudi-led war and blockade. Earlier this week, newsmagazine Foreign Policy reported that the US State Department was considering the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4050,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8,1,6],"tags":[1093,1069,966,1436,340,639,178,213,84,168,177,642,27,157,638],"yoast_head":"\n