Kenya, the United States (US) Government and other allied nations issued a joint statement regarding attacks against international ships by terror designated Houthis group of Yemen.
According to the joint statement released by the White House on Wednesday, January 23, 2024, the allied nations strongly condemned the attacks against vessels transiting the Red Sea channel and surrounding waterways by the group.
“We condemn these attacks and demand an end to them. We also underscore that those who supply the Houthis with the weapons to conduct these attacks are violating UN Security Council Resolution 2216 and international law,” the statement read in part.
The Joint Statement was signed by the Governments of Albania, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Italy, Kenya, Latvia, and Lithuania.
Also, other countries that signed the statement include the governments Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, United Kingdom, and the United States.
According to the statement, the armed forces of the UK, US and other nations conducted additional strikes on Wednesday against eight targets in Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen.
Continuous Attacks
The statement came in response to continued illegal and reckless Houthi attacks against maritime vessels transiting the Red Sea and surrounding waterways.
While justifying the attacks, the White House noted that they are in accordance with the inherent right of individual and collective self-defense, consistent with the UN Charter.
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“These strikes were designed to disrupt and degrade the capability of the Houthis to continue their attacks on global trade and innocent mariners from around the world, while avoiding escalation,” the statement added.
Additionally, the nations noted that the consistent thirty plus attacks are a threat to all countries that rely on international maritime shipping.
US Designates Group
In addition, the statement comes days after the United States relisted the Yemeni-based militant group among a list of terror groups following a series of attacks targeting US military forces and international ships.
In an earlier statement on January 17, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the designation of the group.
According to CENTCOM, the Houthis group of Yemen were designated as a global terrorist group following repeated attacks.
CENTCOM further said the designation would take effect within 30 days, to allow the US to ensure robust humanitarian carve outs are in place.
The designation includes sanctions against the group, cutting out essential services that may aid them.
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CENTCOM further clarified that commercial shipments into Yemeni ports on which the Yemeni people rely for food, medicine and fuel will not be covered by the sanctions.
This is in addition to the carveouts included in all sanction’s programs for food, medicine, and humanitarian assistance.
The Houthis are an extremist movement originating from Northwest Yemen that follows Zaydism, a branch of Shiite Islam.
Over the past months, the militants have engaged in unprecedented attacks against US military forces and international maritime vessels operating in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
According to the group, the attacks are in retaliation of the war against Hamas in the Israel-Hamas war.
