US ambassador to the United Nations, Dorothy Shea, condemned Iran for the Houthi rebels’ continued attacks on civilian cargo vessels in the Red Sea during the UN Security Council briefing on Yemen on Tuesday.
IRAN INTERNATIONAL -- “Iran’s defiance of this Council’s resolutions enables the Houthis to escalate regional tensions. Iran’s continued support for the Houthis also poses a threat to the people of Yemen and to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” she told the council.
“In that regard, the United States commends Yemeni government-aligned forces for their July seizure of at least 750 tons of Iranian weapons bound for the Houthis. We urge the UN Secretariat to facilitate an inspection of that seizure by the Yemen Panel of Experts as soon as possible.”
The Iran-backed group, which controls around two thirds of Yemen's population in one third of the country, began a maritime blockade in the Red Sea in November 2023, following a call by Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a show of allegiance to Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza.