Young, Murphy, Coons Caution Against Designating Houthis in Yemen as Terrorist Organization

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) today issued a statement cautioning the Trump Administration against designating the Houthis in Yemen as a Foreign Terrorist Organization: 

“We are concerned about the adverse consequences of designating the entire Houthi movement in Yemen as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. We have reason to believe that this designation would further destabilize the country, which is already the home of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, make it harder to negotiate a peace agreement, and stop the important work of the many NGOs providing lifesaving assistance in the country. This designation would almost certainly prevent the critical delivery of food, medical supplies, and other items necessary to combat both COVID-19 and famine. Yemen remains the world’s worst humanitarian disaster, one that on occasion has been exacerbated by ill-advised policies in recent years. Creating new, additional obstacles to the delivery of food and medical aid — during a global pandemic — is not in the best interest of the United States, our regional allies and partners, or the people of Yemen.”

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