US sanctions network financing Houthi Red Sea shipping attacks
- The US Treasury said it had sanctioned the head of the Currency Exchangers Association in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a
- The Iran-backed Houthi group, which controls northern Yemen, has been attacking vessels in the region forcing cargo ships to avoid the Suez Canal
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The US Treasury Department unveiled sanctions on Thursday against a network involved in financing the growing number of attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels against international shipping in the Red Sea.
In a statement, the US Treasury said it had sanctioned the head of the Currency Exchangers Association in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, along with three exchanges in Yemen and Turkey responsible for “facilitating the flow of Iranian financial assistance” to the Houthis.
It added that these people facilitated the transfer of “millions of dollars” to the Houthis at the direction of Sa’id al-Jamal, a group linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC).
Unlike the Houthis, the IRGC has been designated as a foreign terrorist organisation by the United States.
“Today’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 destabilising the region,” said Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson in a statement.
