President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing his administration to re-designate the Houthis in Yemen as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. The move reverses a decision by the Biden administration in 2021 to de-list the Houthis and follows more than 15 months of relentless attacks on US warships, Israel, and international shipping.
Trump’s executive order on January 22, 2025, states the Houthis are “supported by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force (IRGC-QF), which arms and trains terrorist organizations worldwide.” It notes that the Houthis have launched “dozens” of attacks against US Navy warships and “more than 300 projectiles” against Israel and conducted “more than 100” strikes against international shipping in the Bab al Mandeb Strait, a vital shipping lane that connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
“The Houthis’ activities threaten the security of American civilians and personnel in the Middle East, the safety of our closest regional partners, and the stability of global maritime trade,” states the executive order.
The designation order also requires “the Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)” to “jointly conduct a review of the United Nations partners, nongovernmental organizations, and contractors through which USAID works in Yemen.” This review will “identify any entities with a relationship with USAID” that have “made payments to members of, or governmental entities controlled by, Ansar Allah [the Houthis]” or “criticized international efforts to counter Ansar Allah while failing to document Ansar Allah’s abuses sufficiently.”
“The Administrator of USAID shall take all appropriate action to terminate the projects, grants, or contracts” of offending entities.
15 months of Houthi attacks on shipping
Houthi attacks on international shipping and US, British, and French warships have forced a significant amount of maritime trade to forego the Suez Canal and transit the Horn of Africa, dramatically increasing shipping times and costs. Additionally, insurance rates for vessels that choose to transit the Bab al Mandeb Strait have skyrocketed.
The Houthis began targeting international shipping on November 19, 2023, six weeks after Hamas launched its deadly assault on Israel from Gaza on October 7. The Houthis vowed to continue their attacks until Israel ended the fighting in Gaza, and they attacked the first US warship shortly afterward on November 27, 2023.
The US and its allies responded by initiating Operation Prosperity Guardian in December 2023. Eleven nations signed onto the operation, which was defensive in nature. The Houthi attacks did not cease, and the US and the UK then initiated Operation Poseidon Archer, which periodically launched airstrikes against military assets in an effort to degrade Houthi offensive capabilities. Fewer nations signed onto Poseidon Archer, which targeted military equipment but did not strike Houthi military and political leaders. Houthi attacks still did not cease despite these operations.
The Biden administration had de-listed the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in February 2021. Secretary of State Antony Blinken argued that the de-listing was “a recognition of the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen,” as the designation prevented international aid organizations from providing humanitarian assistance. The Biden administration was forced to list the Houthis as a Specially Designated Terrorist Organization in February 2024 after the Houthis continued attacks but refused to re-designate the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, which carries a stricter enforcement regime.
The Houthis and Iran’s Axis of Resistance
The Houthis, as part of Iran’s Axis of Resistance along with Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria, have been targeting US forces to drive America from the region and support Palestinian terror groups in Gaza.
The Houthis possess ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, and have used all three weapons systems against commercial vessels and US warships since Hamas launched its October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. The Houthis also have a decade-long history of harassing and attacking commercial ships operating in the Gulf of Aden, the Bab al Mandeb Strait, and the Red Sea.
Also known as Ansar Allah, the Houthis have seized control of significant areas of northern Yemen, including the capital of Sanaa, since launching a rebellion in 2014. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) increasingly co-opted the Houthi movement since its formation in the 1990s. The IRGC has provided the Houthis with weapons, training, and financial support. Iran uses its network of militias and terrorist groups in Yemen, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon to put pressure on Israel and the United States.
The Houthis are estimated to have 100,000 fighters under arms. The group’s official motto is “God is great, death to the US, death to Israel, curse the Jews, and victory for Islam.”
