The U.S. Treasury and State Departments imposed sanctions on three vessels and their owners for providing support to Houthi terrorists in Yemen, the departments announced in separate statements on Monday.
Two of the vessels were registered to shipping companies in the Marshall Islands, and one was registered to Mauritius, according to the Treasury Department. The vessels that were targeted “discharged refined petroleum products at Houthi-controlled ports.”
“The United States is committed to disrupting the Houthis’ illicit revenue generation, financial facilitators, and suppliers as part of our whole-of-government approach to eliminating threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” read the State Department’s statement.
“Today’s action underscores our commitment to disrupt the Houthis’ efforts to fund their dangerous and destabilizing attacks in the region,” said Michael Faulkender, deputy secretary of the Treasury.
“Treasury will continue to leverage our tools and authorities to target those who seek to enable the Houthis’ ability to exploit the people of Yemen and continue their campaign of violence,” he continued.
After U.S. President Donald Trump reclassified the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization, the United States upped its strikes and military offensives against the Iran proxy group. U.S. military strikes in Yemen in recent weeks have killed at least 500 Houthi fighters.