UANI Calls For Immediate U.S.-Led Action Against Houthis

Houthi Attack In Red Sea Demands Military Response

(New York, N.Y.) — United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace and Chief of Staff Claire Jungman issued the following joint statement today in response to the Iran-backed Houthis hijacking the GALAXY LEADER in international waters and taking its multinational crew hostage:

“On Sunday, the Iranian regime once again demonstrated to the international community the wide reach of its terrorist proxy network when the Houthis executed a hijacking of a commercial vessel operating lawfully in the international waters of the Red Sea. The attack on a British-owned, Japanese-operated, and Bahamian-flagged vessel linked to an Israeli firm and carrying a multinational crew is an act of piracy, terror, and hostage taking that challenges freedom of navigation and demands an unambiguous international response.

“The responsibility to come to the aid of the vessel and its crew falls on the 38-member nation Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), which undertakes counter-terrorism and counter-piracy operations, and its U.S.-commanded Combined Task Force 153, which oversees international maritime security in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden. President Biden should direct the U.S. Navy, alongside allies, to lead operations to re-take the vessel from the Houthis, free the hostages, and restore deterrence against ongoing threats from the Houthis to freedom of navigation and regional security. This necessarily includes military strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

“In addition, the Biden administration should restore the status quo ante vis-à-vis its designation of the Houthis—officially known as Ansar Allah (Partisans of God)—as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entity. Now is the time to correct the wrongheaded February 2021 decision to relieve the Houthis of their FTO and SDGT designations.

“President Biden should also recognize that the threat of Iranian-backed terrorism is rising and efforts to curb attacks by proxy terror groups of the Iranian regime are failing. Stronger action is necessary. The U.S., together with Israel and our European and Middle East allies, should target military and intelligence targets in Iran, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) sites and missile and drone bases, where Iran’s proxy and partner networks are trained. The authorization of billions of dollars in sanctions relief via lax sanctions enforcement and waivers, too, must be reversed. It makes no sense to provide Iran’s state-sponsorship of terrorism with a financial lifeline. Business as usual is not an option.”

To read UANI’s resource Houthis, please click here.

To read UANI’s resource IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), please click here.