Washington refuses to back down from designating the Houthis a terrorist organization
English - Saturday 16 January 2021 الساعة 08:47 am
Aden, NewsYemen:
The United States has rejected calls by UN officials to retract the designation of the Houthi group in Yemen as a "terrorist organization."
The US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Mills stressed, during a Security Council session on Thursday evening, the political importance of including the Houthis on the terrorism list.
He also affirmed that Washington had taken adequate humanitarian measures in Yemen following the classification of the Houthi militia as a terrorist organization, to ensure that a humanitarian catastrophe would not occur, about which some UN officials and aid organizations had warned.
This comes after three senior United Nations officials called on the United States, on Thursday, to cancel the decision to designate the Yemeni Houthi group as a foreign terrorist organization, and warned that the designation would push the country towards widespread famine and hinder peace efforts.
The UN envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, Mark Lowcock, the UN aid official, and David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Program, issued the warnings during a meeting at the UN Security Council on Thursday.
The spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said that the Secretary-General supports his officials' call for Washington to reverse its decision. "We fear that there will be an unavoidable negative impact on my efforts to bring the two sides (of the conflict) together," Griffiths told the council.
"The decision will contribute to increasing the possibility of famine in Yemen and it should be canceled on humanitarian grounds at the earliest possible opportunity," he added.
The United Nations describes the situation in Yemen as the largest humanitarian crisis in the world, as 80% of its population needs aid.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the resolution against the Iran-aligned Houthis on Sunday, and it will take effect on January 19, the last day of President Donald Trump's administration.
