The State Department said on Friday it would review a decision by the Trump administration to label the Houthi rebels in Yemen as a foreign terrorist organization.
The quick decision to launch a last-minute review under the then Foreign Minister Mike Pompeo
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‘Ansarallah, sometimes known as the Houthis, bears significant responsibility for the humanitarian catastrophe and insecurity in Yemen. “We strongly believe that Ansarallah should change his behavior,” a State Department spokesman told The Hill.
“At the same time, we must ensure that we do not hinder the provision of humanitarian aid. As noted by the designated secretary Blinken, the State Department has begun a review of Ansarallah’s terrorism instructions, ‘the spokesman added, referring to Antony Blinken
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Incoming officials from the Biden administration sounded the alarm over the designation and indicated that the Trump era could be reversed soon after inauguration.
Blinken, who the Biden government hopes will be confirmed in the coming days, told senators during his confirmation hearing this week that he would seek to review the designation “immediately.”
He said his “deep concern about the name made was that it did not appear to be particularly practical to advance the efforts against the Houthis and bring them back to the negotiating table, while making it even more difficult. be if it is already to provide humanitarian aid to people in dire need. ”
The State Department spokesman told The Hill that he “will not discuss or comment on internal discussions about the review in public; however, with the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, we are working as fast as we can to carry out the review and make a decision. ”
Yemen’s years of civil war between the Houthis, who have ties to Iran, and the government backed by Saudi Arabia – a key ally of the US – have plunged the country into one of the worst humanitarian crises in modern history. Thousands of civilians were killed in the fighting and a famine spread across all corners of the country.
Pompeo instituted the designation on his way out of office in the wake of U.S. support for the operations against the Houthi. However, health experts have warned that the label could hamper the provision of assistance to civilians in areas held by Houthi by humanitarian groups that would reduce aid to prevent the sanctions from being mistaken.
Pompeo said in a statement that the United States “intends to put in place measures to reduce its impact on certain humanitarian activities and imports into Yemen.”
“We have expressed our willingness to work with relevant officials at the United Nations, international and non-governmental organizations and other international donors to address these implications,” he said, although criticism continued.
“This comes at the most difficult time when more than 16 million Yemeni women, children and men are living in severe and deteriorating food insecurity,” said Michelle Nunn, CEO of CARE USA, an international non-governmental organization focused on combating global poverty. and world hunger. , told The Hill this week.
“This particular designation amounts to a termination order for the humanitarian response in northern Yemen and its consequences will lead to more despair and lost lives throughout the country.”
Blinken told senators on Tuesday that Biden plans to end US support for the Saudi offensive in Yemen, mainly over humanitarian issues.
“The president-elect has made it clear that we will end our support for the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen,” he said.
“But I want to [to] make it clear, I think we should be in close contact with Saudi Arabia, with our partner there. We need to be very clear about what we do, why we do something and go through it, “he added. But the most important point is that for reasons we have discussed, we believe that it is not in the national interest to continue with the support. . “