U.S., Britain unveil new Houthi-targeted sanctions

Feb. 27 (UPI) -- The United States and Britain on Tuesday unveiled sanctions targeting the Iran-backed Houthi militia over its attacks on their military ships as well as commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The Houthis have launched more than 45 attacks on ships off Yemen's coast since Nov. 19, prompting Washington and London to retaliate with large- and small-scale strikes into Yemen of their own.

The Biden administration has described the ally strikes as an effort to degrade the Houthis' military ability and deter it from further attacks, with the sanctions announced Tuesday as a method to cut off its funding of them.

Together, the two countries sanctioned Mohammad Reza Fallahzadeh, deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, whom the State Department described as a Houthi-affiliated operative "who has supported the Houthis' aggressive actions."

The U.S. Treasury said it also sanctioned the Hong Kong-based Cap Tees Shipping Co. and its Artura vessel, which has transported Iranian commodities for Houthi financier Sa'id al-Jamal, the head of a network of front companies and shipping vessels whom the United States designated in June 2021 for generating tens of millions in the sale of Iranian petroleum through sanctions evasion.

The Biden administration said Tuesday that Artura received Iranian goods via a ship-to-ship transfer that it then handed off to the MEHLE tanker, which was hit with U.S. sanctions on Jan. 12 for its connection to al-Jamal.

Britain on Tuesday announced that it had also sanctioned al-Jamal.

"The attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis are unacceptable, illegal and a threat to innocent lives and freedom of navigation," Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement.

"As I have made clear to the Iranian Foreign Minister, the regime bears responsibility for these attacks due to the extensive military support it has provided to the Houthis."

Separately, Britain on Tuesday sanctioned IRGC Quds Force Unit 190 for transferring and smuggling weapons to militias allied with Iran, IRGC Quds Force Unit 6000 as it is in charge of operations in the Arabian Peninsula and has personnel aiding the Houthis in Yemen and IRGC Quds Force Unit 340, which is in charge of research and development and offers training and technical support to Iran-backed groups.

Ali Hussein Badr Al Din Al-Houthi, the Houthi's undersecretary of the Interior and commander of security, was also blacklisted by London.

Washington on its own Tuesday hit Houthi member Ibrahim al-Nashiri.

"As the Houthis persistently threaten the security of peaceful international commerce, the United States and the United Kingdom will continue to disrupt the funding streams that enable these destabilizing activities," Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement.

Amid Israel's war against Hamas, another Iran proxy militia, in Gaza, the Houthis have vowed to erect a naval blockade of the all-important trade route that passes Yemen in solidarity with Palestinians.

At least 18 shipping companies have rerouted their vessels around horn of Africa to avoid the violence, which adds cost and time to the delivery of goods. Between 10% and 15% of global trade transit through the Red Sea.

The U.S. sanctions on Tuesday follow the Houthis being redesignated in mid-January as a terrorist organization.