A bipartisan effort in the Senate to sanction Yemen’s Houthis is underway, with a bill submitted by Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Dave McCormick (R-Pa.).
The Houthi Human Rights Accountability Act would mandate that a determination be made on whether the Iranian-backed Houthis should be sanctioned for human-rights violations or hostage-taking.
“The Houthis have terrorized the Yemeni people, the region and Americans for far too long,” Rosen said in a statement. “With Iran’s support, the Houthis have prevented crucial, lifesaving aid from reaching civilians and unlawfully detained humanitarians and diplomats, including current and former local staff of the U.S. Mission in Yemen just this week.”
Rosen has previously worked on a bipartisan basis to designate the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization, as well as to enforce sanctions and asset freezes on Iran.
“The Houthis’ campaign of terror and destruction remains a threat to global maritime trade, our regional allies and the people of Yemen,” McCormick wrote. “The severity of the Houthi menace is magnified by their human-rights abuses, antisemitism and their continued theft of international humanitarian aid.”
The submitted legislation would also mandate a report on Houthi extremist indoctrination and the threat it poses to long-term regional stability.
A companion bill was filed in the House in March but has not progressed.
The Houthis, whose rebellion led to a devastating civil war in Yemen, have been widely condemned for human-rights violations, including the use of child soldiers. Their blockage of maritime traffic in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, including attacks on ships and the taking of hostages, has led to major, costly disruptions in global shipping.
The Trump administration designated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization in March after the Biden White House lifted the designation early in its tenure.
