Who are the Houthis and why did the US and UK retaliate for their attacks on ships in the Red Sea?
When the U.S. and U.K. warships launched waves of air, ship and submarine-launched missiles at Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen late Thursday it was the culmination of weeks of warnings to the rebel group to cease their destructive attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
Yemen's Houthis launch their largest Red Sea drone and missile attack, though no damage is reported
Yemenโs Houthi rebels have fired their largest-ever barrage of drones and missiles targeting shipping in the Red Sea, forcing the United States and British navies to shoot down the projectiles in a major naval engagement.
3 commercial ships hit by missiles in Houthi attack in Red Sea, US warship downs 3 drones
The U.S. military says three commercial ships in the Red Sea were struck by ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen, and a U.S. warship shot down three drones in self-defense during the hourslong assault.
Yemen's rivals are not only clashing on the ground but battling economically for revenue from ports
A U.N. envoy says sporadic armed clashes between Yemenโs Houthi rebels and government forces are straining peace efforts, and the rivals are now also battling over revenue from ports, trade, banking and natural resources.
Biden aide, Saudi leader discuss efforts to end Yemen war
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke by phone with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday amid signs that the Saudis and Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen are making โremarkable progressโ toward finding a permanent end to their nine-year conflict.
Drone attack in Abu Dhabi claimed by Yemen's rebels kills 3
Emirati police say a suspected drone attack claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebels may have sparked an explosion that engulfed three oil tankers in Abu Dhabi and another fire at an extension of Abu Dhabi International Airport that killed three people and wounded six.
UN General Assembly urged to investigate Yemen atrocities
More than 60 organizations are urging the U.N. General Assembly to establish an investigative body to gather and preserve evidence of serious human rights violations during Yemenโs seven-year conflict - including possible war crimes and crimes against humanity.
US sanctions 2 Yemeni rebels for cross-border, sea attacks
Yemeni men walk amid the graves of Houthi fighters who were killed during recent fighting, at a cemetery in Sanaa, Yemen, Tuesday, Mar. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)CAIRO โ The United States imposed sanctions Tuesday on two rebel leaders in Yemen, citing their alleged roles in cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia and shipping vessels in the Red Sea. Blinken rejected that criticism, saying the U.S. could help Saudi Arabia defend itself, while also easing Yemen's humanitarian crisis and pushing for a political solution to the war. Al-Saadi heads the Houthi naval forces and masterminded attacks on ships in the Red Sea, while al-Hamzi supervised missile and explosive-laden drone attacks in Yemen and on Saudi Arabia, the Treasury Department alleged. As Yemenโs war grinds on, Houthi missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia have grown commonplace, but only rarely causing damage.
US warns Yemen's Houthi rebels after terrorism delisting
President Joe Biden is distancing himself from Saudi Arabia's rulers over their war in Yemen and rights abuses. That includes Biden announcing Feb. 4, 2021, he would make good on a campaign pledge to cut U.S. support for a five-year Saudi-led military campaign in neighboring Yemen. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)WASHINGTON โ The Biden administration on Sunday warned Yemenโs Houthi rebels against ongoing attacks against civilians just 48 hours after moving to strike the group from a terrorism blacklist. It also came just three days after President Joe Biden ordered an end to U.S. support for the Saudi-led offensive military operations against the rebels. Saudi Arabia, along with the United Arab Emirates and other countries, entered the war alongside Yemenโs internationally recognized government in March 2015.
Biden revokes terrorist designation for Yemen's Houthis
WASHINGTON โ President Joe Biden's administration is moving to revoke the designation of Yemen's Houthis as a terrorist group, citing the need to mitigate one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters. The official, who wasn't authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the removal changed nothing about the Biden administration's views of the Houthis, who have targeted civilians and kidnapped Americans. AdThe move comes a day after Biden announced an end to offensive support to Saudi Arabia's campaign against the Houthis. The U.S. says the Saudi-led campaign has entrenched Iranโs role in the conflict, on the side of the Houthis. Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut praised the Biden administration's move, saying, โThe designation did not impact the Houthis in any practical way, but it stopped food and other critical aid from being delivered inside Yemen and would have prevented effective political negotiation."
Pariah with benefits: US aiding Saudi defense despite chill
(AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)As a presidential candidate, Joe Biden laid out a tougher line on Saudi Arabia than any U.S. president in decades. He said he would make the kingdom โpay the priceโ for human rights abuses and โmake them in fact the pariah that they are.โBut if Biden is making Saudi Arabia a pariah now, it's a pariah with benefits. U.S. leaders also see Saudi Arabia as a regional counterweight to Iran. The administration already had said it was pausing the Trump administration's sale of precision-guided munitions to Saudi Arabia. AdInternational criticism of Saudi Arabia has mounted since 2015, under King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Biden ending US support for Saudi-led offensive in Yemen
The reversal of policy also comes as a rebuke to Saudi Arabia. Saudi state media focused on that part of Biden's announcements Thursday. The Houthis have launched multiple drone and missile strikes deep into Saudi Arabia. The weeks-old Biden administration has made clear that shifting its stance toward the Yemen war, and toward Saudi Arabia over the Yemen offensive and other rights abuses, was a priority. A career foreign service member, he has served in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other countries in the Middle East and elsewhere.
Pompeo to designate Yemen's Houthi rebels as terrorist group
(Saul Loeb/Pool Photo via AP, File)WASHINGTON โ Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced that he will designate Yemenโs Iran-backed Houthi rebels as a โforeign terrorist organizationโ as time runs down on the Trump administration. In addition to the Houthi designation, Pompeo in coming days is also expected to likely re-designate Cuba as a โstate sponsor of terrorism," according to several admininstration officials. On Saturday Pompeo angered China when he declared restrictions on U.S. diplomatic contacts with Taiwanese officials to be null and void. The administration had been weighing the formal designation of the Houthi rebels as a โforeign terrorist organizationโ for months. On Saturday, Pompeo announced that he was rescinding all restrictions on contacts between U.S. diplomats and Taiwanese officials.
Yemen, China, Cuba top Pompeo to-do list as time runs down
The announcement comes as Pompeo and his top aides rush to complete actions they believe will cement their legacy and the presidentโs. In addition to the Houthi designation, Pompeo in coming days is also expected to likely re-designate Cuba as a โstate sponsor of terrorism," according to several admininstration officials. On Saturday Pompeo angered China when he declared restrictions on U.S. diplomatic contacts with Taiwanese officials to be null and void. โThe United States recognizes concerns that these designations will have an impact on the humanitarian situation in Yemen,โ Pompeo said in his statement. On Saturday, Pompeo announced that he was rescinding all restrictions on contacts between U.S. diplomats and Taiwanese officials.
Yemen rebels' missile strikes Saudi oil facility in Jiddah
DUBAI โ Yemen's Houthi rebels said they struck a Saudi oil facility in the port city of Jiddah early Monday with a new cruise missile, just hours after the kingdom finished hosting its virtual Group of 20 leaders summit. Videos of a small explosion at a Saudi Arabian Oil Co. facility in Jiddah had circulated on social media all day and a satellite photo confirmed damage at the site. Gen. Yehia Sarie, a Houthi military spokesman, tweeted early Monday that the rebels fired a new Quds-2 cruise missile at the facility. He posted a satellite image online that matched Aramco's North Jiddah Bulk Plant, where oil products are stored in tanks. Its stock traded slightly up Monday on Riyadh's Tadawul stock exchange as crude oil prices remained steady above $40 a barrel.
2 US citizens released by Iran-backed militants in Yemen
โThe United States welcomes the release today of U.S. citizens Sandra Loli and Mikael Gidada from Houthi custody in Yemen,โ national security adviser Robert O'Brien said in a statement. Yemen plunged into chaos and civil war when the Houthi rebels took over Sanaa in 2014 from the internationally recognized government. The war in Yemen has spawned the worldโs worst humanitarian crisis, leaving millions suffering from food and medical shortages. Mohamed Abdel-Salam, a spokesman for the Iran-backed militants, also confirmed that about 240 rebels returned to Sanaa on two Omani flights. ___Associated Press writer Ahmed al-Haj in Sanaa, Yemen, contributed to this report.
WFP fights hunger in food-deprived places, crises, war zones
FILE - In this Aug. 25, 2019 file photo, a displaced Yemeni receives food aid provided by the World Food Program, at a school in Sanaa, Yemen. The World Food Program won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, Oct. 9, 2020 for its efforts to combat hunger amid the coronavirus pandemic, recognition that shines light on vulnerable communities across the Middle East and Africa that the U.N. agency seeks to help, those starving and living in war zones that may rarely get the worlds attention. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
Yemen gets new virus hospital after other facilities close
The Red Cross announced the opening of the facility on Monday, Sept. 21, 2020 as the virus continues to spread largely unchecked in war-torn Yemen. (International Committee for the Red Cross via AP)COPENHAGEN โ The Red Cross on Monday announced the opening of a new field hospital in southern Yemen specifically to treat coronavirus patients, as the virus continues to spread largely unchecked in the war-torn country. Many medical facilities in Aden, southern Yemen's main city, have closed as staffers fled or simply turn patients away. The Finnish Red Cross and the Yemeni Red Crescent also helped with its preparations, according to ICRC. Last year, infighting broke out in southern Yemen between government forces and separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates, threatening the anti-Houthi camp.
UNICEF: Millions of Yemeni children may starve amid pandemic
The U.N. childrens agency says that millions of Yemeni children could be pushed to the brink of starvation as the coronavirus pandemic sweeps across the war-torn Arab country amid a huge drop in humanitarian aid funding. UNICEF on Friday, June 26, 2020 released a new report, Yemen five years on: Children, conflict and COVID-19. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed, File)CAIRO Millions of children could be pushed to the brink of starvation as the coronavirus pandemic sweeps across war-torn Yemen amid a "huge" drop in humanitarian aid funding, the U.N. childrens agency warned Friday. International relief agencies are alarmed by the significant decline in humanitarian funding promised earlier by donor countries. Around 9.6 million children do not have sufficient access to safe water, sanitation, or hygiene and two-thirds of the countrys roughly 30 million people rely on food assistance.
Saudi-led coalition in Yemen denies 'theatrical' Houthi ambush claims
Yemen's Houthi rebels have released video claiming responsibility for a 72-hour attack on Saudi Arabian and Yemeni forces that purportedly left hundreds dead. RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has dismissed claims by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels that they carried out a large-scale ambush that led to hundreds of deaths and the capture of thousands of prisoners of war. On Sunday, Houthi rebels released video purporting to show the apparent aftermath of an August attack that they said killed hundreds of Saudi-backed troops and led to the capture of 2,000 others. Houthi spokesman Brigadier Gen. Yahya Saree said Houthi forces had also wrested control of 350 square kilometers (135 square miles) of land from coalition forces in what he hailed as the "biggest trap." Yemen has been embroiled in a years-long civil war that has pitted a coalition backed by Saudi Arabia against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Houthi rebels show video of alleged attack on Saudi, Yemeni forces
MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP/Getty ImagesABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates - Yemen's Houthi rebels have released video claiming responsibility for a 72-hour attack on Saudi Arabian and Yemeni forces that purportedly left hundreds dead. "The prisoners include large numbers of commanders, officers and soldiers of the Saudi army," Saree added. Saree also said the rebels launched drone attacks inside Saudi territory, one of which targeted the capital of Riyadh. CNN has not been able to verify Saree's claims or video of soldiers surrendering on the Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV. The video showed four individuals who were captured that claimed to be Saudi soldiers.
Decaying tanker near Yemeni coast threatens 'catastrophic explosion'
The decaying SAFER FSO tanker contains an estimated 1.1 million barrels of oil and has been moored and left without maintenance near the Yemeni port of Ras Isa for several years, according to the UN. (CNN) - An abandoned tanker loaded with oil is threatening a major environmental disaster near the coast of Yemen, the United Nations has said, amid expert warnings of a "catastrophic" explosion. The decaying SAFER FSO tanker contains an estimated 1.1 million barrels of oil and has been moored and left without maintenance near the Yemeni port of Ras Isa for several years, according to the UN. The aging tanker had been converted into a floating storage platform before the war in Yemen started. It would normally transfer Yemeni oil from the Ras Isa port into other tankers for shipment.