Trump puts Yemen’s Houthis back on foreign terrorist list

President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday re-designating the Yemen Houthi movement as a foreign terrorist organization.

The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, are an Islamist military and political organization backed by Iran. Mr. Trump’s executive order says it is now the policy of the United States to “to cooperate with its regional partners to eliminate Ansar Allah’s capabilities and operations, deprive it of resources, and thereby end its attacks on U.S. personnel and civilians, U.S. partners, and maritime shipping in the Red Sea.”

“The Houthis’ activities threaten the security of American civilians and personnel in the Middle East, the safety of our closest regional partners, and the stability of global maritime trade,” the White House said.

Mr. Trump designated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization in the last weeks of his first administration, but former President Biden removed the group from the list in February 2021, arguing that it would harm the humanitarian assistance being brought in to help the citizens of Yemen.

Mr. Biden announced the change as part of his effort to change the U.S. approach to the civil war in Yemen. That same month, he also announced that the U.S. would no longer support offensive operations in Yemen, where war had been raging since 2015.

Mr. Biden re-designated the Houthis as a “global terrorist group” last January due to the Houthis’ dozens of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, a major shipping route.

Mr. Trump’s executive order comes as the Houthis released the crew of a cargo ship that it hijacked more than a year ago in the Red Sea. The Galaxy Leader’s 25-person crew was handed over to mediators Wednesday.

Any group designated as a foreign terrorist organization has its U.S. assets frozen and is banned from doing business with American companies. It also makes it illegal for U.S. citizens to provide support or resources to the organization.

Rep. Michael McCaul, former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, applauded Mr. Trump’s order.

“The Houthi rebels have launched numerous attacks on U.S. interests and international shipping in the Red Sea — disrupting global supply chains and driving up costs,” the Texas Republican said in a statement, adding that he called on Mr. Biden previously to re-designate the group as an foreign terrorist organization.

“President Trump wasted no time in doing the right thing and re-designating the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, intent on harming the United States and its citizens,” he said.