US, UK sanction four top Houthi military officials involved in attacks on Red Sea shipping

The US and the UK have imposed sanctions on four Houthi military officials who have supported recent attacks by the Yemeni militants on ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the latest in a suite of actions that the US and its supporters have taken to protect shipping in the region.

"It is just another example of how we are trying to use all the levers at our disposal to hold the Houthis accountable for these reckless attacks," White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said in a Jan. 25 press briefing. The sanctioned officials are "directly tied to the attacks in the Red Sea," Kirby said.

Rising tensions in the Red Sea caused by the attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis have contributed to crude oil futures breaking out of their recent trading range. NYMEX March WTI settled up $2.27 at $77.36/b and ICE March Brent climbed $2.39 to settle at $82.43/b.

Daily ship transits through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, stood at 40 as of Jan. 22 and remained 40% below early December levels, S&P Global's Maritime Intelligence Risk Suite data shows.

The sanctions targeted the so-called Houthi minister of defense, the commander of maritime forces, the coastal defense forces chief and the director of procurement, according to a Jan. 25 statement from the US Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

"The Houthis' persistent terrorist attacks on merchant vessels and their civilian crews lawfully transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden threaten to disrupt international supply chains and the freedom of navigation, which is critical to global security, stability, and prosperity," Brian Nelson, Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in the statement.

The new sanctions come after the US designated the Houthis as a specially designated global terrorist group, a designation that will take effect around Feb. 16.