President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday, re-designating Ansar Islam a.k.a. The Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Trump had declared the Iranian-backed Houthis a terrorist organization before the end of his first term in January 2021. However, the Biden administration reversed this designation.
The White House stated, “As a consequence of the Biden Administration’s weak policies, the Houthis fired on U.S. Navy ships dozens of times, launched numerous assaults on civilian infrastructures in partner countries, and attacked commercial vessels transiting Bab al-Mandeb over 100 times.”
According to the executive order, it is now the policy of the United States to work with regional partners to eliminate Houthi capabilities and operations and deprive them of resources. This will end their attacks against U.S. personnel, civilians, and partners as well as maritime shipping on the Red Sea.
According to the order, both the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, and the Secretary of State will jointly review United Nations Partners, Nongovernmental Organizations, and Contractors operating in Yemen.
The White House announced that “the President will direct USAID not to continue its relationship with entities who have paid the Houthis or have opposed international efforts against the Houthis and turned a blind eye to their terrorism and abuses,”
