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1 [1] (January 27, 2025)

handle is hein.crs/govesgc0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Conqr ssbn I Research Serva infor inj ~ Inc tiv~ d~ )ate s~ iS 14 January 27, 2025 Yemen: Terrorism Designation, U.S. Policy, and Congress On January 22, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order (EO) initiating a process for the redesignation of the Yemeni Shia Islamist group Ansar Allah (Arabic for the Partisans of God), commonly referred to as the Houthis, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). An FTO designation authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to impose asset freezing sanctions on the organization and triggers the application of 18 U.S.C. §3229B, which criminalizes the provision of material support to designated FTOs. The order further outlines a process requiring a review of some U.S. assistance programs in Yemen and directs the termination as appropriate of certain projects, grants, and contracts with entities found to have made payments to Houthi entities or insufficiently documented Houthi abuses (see below). The Houthis have controlled most of northern Yemen since 2015. Prior U.S. sanctions policy provided some exceptions for transactions in Yemen. Houthi attacks since October 2023 have disrupted regional security and global maritime commerce. The group receives material support from Iran and Russia and has attacked Israel, U.S. vessels, and (before October 2023) Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The EO and statement say that U.S. policy is to cooperate with regional partners to eliminate Houthi capabilities and operations, as well as to deprive the Houthis of resources. It does not specify additional actions, resources, or authorities that may be used to achieve those ends. President Trump previously designated the group as both an FTO and an entity subject to sanctions under the Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) program in January 2021. President Biden revoked both designations, citing concerns that they could impede the delivery of humanitarian assistance or jeopardize efforts to promote dialogue aimed at establishing ceasefire in the war in Yemen. In February 2024, the Biden Administration reimposed sanctions on the Houthis as an SDGT, citing unprecedented attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. Congress and Yemen. Since 2015, Congress has considered the effects of conflict and sanctions on regional security and humanitarian conditions in Yemen. Congress has provided resources and authorities to support U.S. policy, including providing additional defense funding in 2024 to support U.S. regional deterrence operations. Since the 117th Congress, some Members have called on the executive branch to designate the Houthis as an FTO and have introduced legislation to do so. The Trump Administration has not said whether it intends to request additional funds or authorities from Congress in support of its wider Yemen policy. The 119th Congress may seek additional information from the Administration concerning its policy toward Yemen and the Houthis, its expectations about the reactions and intentions of Yemeni and other international actors, its projections of the benefits and costs of different options, and its plans with regard to U.S. humanitarian assistance in Yemen. Congress may consider opportunities to influence U.S. policy toward Yemen, including via authorization and appropriations legislation, with regard to U.S. sanctions, diplomacy, assistance programs, and military operations. Policy Context Political-Military Developments. More than 100 Houthi attacks on Israel and on international shipping and U.S. and partner naval vessels in the Red Sea region have occurred from October 2023 to January 2025, with the Houthis claiming their attacks were intended to support Palestinians and secure an end to Israeli operations against the Palestinian Sunni Islamist group and U.S.-designated FTO Hamas. In January 2025, Yemen's representative to the United Nations (UN) rejected Houthi justifications. Yemen's internationally recognized government has welcomed the Trump Administration's announced intention to redesignate the Houthis as an FTO. Leaders of Yemen's Southern Transitional Council (STC) also welcomed the U.S. decision and reiterated a call for joint international- Yemeni military operations to counter the Houthis and reduce the area under their control. The STC has received military aid from the UAE and seeks to reestablish southern Yemen as a separate state, which it was prior to 1990. In a September 2024 report, the United Nations panel of experts on Yemen described the transformation of the Houthis from a localized armed group with limited capabilities to a powerful military organization, extending their operational capabilities well beyond the territories under their control. The panel attributed the Houthis' evolution to unprecedented transfers of material support from Iran, Lebanese Hezbollah, and Iraqi armed groups. U.S. officials have condemned Houthi attacks and the Houthis' detention of Yemenis with ties to UN or U.S. government entities and aid organization. U.S. sanctions have been levied against additional Houthi operatives and supporters. U.S. military strikes have targeted Houthi weapons and related facilities in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen since January 2024, including a January 8, 2025 strike targeting two underground storage facilities. Israel has responded to deadly Houthi attacks on its territory with several strikes in Yemen, including December 2024 and January 2025 strikes targeting Houthi-controlled ports and a power station and the international airport in Sana'a. Israeli officials have said they will continue to act against the Houthis in response to attacks on Israel and have threatened to target the Houthis' leadership.

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