By Al-Fassel | 2024-02-08

As the Iran-backed Houthis continued to launch missiles at ships in the Red Sea this week, US special envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking travelled to the Gulf to discuss the urgent need to reduce regional tensions with regional partners.

Top of the agenda was putting an end to the Houthis' attacks on commercial vessels, which have numbered more than 40 since November 19, according to the Pentagon.

The Houthis' ongoing attacks are "undermining both freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and progress on the Yemen peace process," the State Department said.

In a series of interviews with regional media outlets, Lenderking discussed the steps the United States has taken to mitigate the threat to international shipping posed by the Houthis and their backer, Iran.

In a Sunday (February 4) edition of the Arab News' "Frankly Speaking" program, Lenderking noted that the recent US decision to renew the Houthis' terrorist designation was "specific to the Houthis' Red Sea attacks on shipping."

He said it was "hugely disappointing" that the Houthis have chosen to attack international commerce and the international economy "in a way that has nothing to do with the purported purpose of those attacks."

More than 50 nations have been affected by the attacks, he said, "and this is becoming an increasing global problem, raising prices, increasing freight costs and insurance costs -- not for the wealthy, for those moving wheat..."

"It's as though I have an issue with my neighbor and I go and burn down the neighborhood grocery store -- it makes no sense," Lenderking said.

Iran's role as enabler

On January 11, the US Navy seized Iranian-made missile components from a dhow in the Arabian Sea that were destined for the Houthis in Yemen.

"Seized items include propulsion, guidance and warheads for Houthi medium range ballistic missiles and anti-ship cruise missiles, as well as air defense associated components," the US military's Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

"I think here we see the very negative role that Iran is playing," Lenderking told Arab News, referring to the incident.

"Those weapons that are being shipped to the Houthis to be used in a variety of ways to antagonize the region, to attack global shipping -- those weapons come from Iran," he said.

"They're not coming from other countries. They're coming from Iran in violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions not to fuel the conflict through providing weapons to the Houthis."

Lenderking accused Iran of behaving "not as an upstanding member of the international community but as a rogue actor."

For their part, he noted, "the Houthis have attacked more than 40 ships, wave after wave of random, indiscriminate and reckless attacks forcing international commerce to move away from the Red Sea."

"That's not good for any country in the region -- especially Yemen," he said, adding that as companies divert from the region, regional economies and the people of the region suffer.

"The sense we have is overwhelmingly that Iran is pushing on an open door here with the Houthis," Lenderking said in another recorded interview, Al-Arabiya reported Wednesday.

Iran is "aiding, abetting, sharing intelligence, helping them target ships, determining which are the more lucrative targets," he said. "Again, we see the very, very negative role that Iran is playing in the region by fanning this conflict."

The Houthis are also "hurting peace in Yemen," Lenderking said, pointing out that "this kind of activity is driving donors away."

The United States is a strong backer of peace in Yemen, he said, and is the largest donor to humanitarian assistance in Yemen, with more than $738 million this past year, totaling more than $5 billion over the course of the conflict.

Attacks on shipping

The Houthis on Tuesday fired six anti-ship ballistic missiles from areas of Yemen they control toward the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, CENTCOM said.

Three of the missiles were attempting to hit M/V Star Nasia, a Marshall Island-flagged, Greek owned-and-operated bulk carrier transiting the Gulf of Aden, while three others were likely targeting M/V Morning Tide, it said.

M/V Morning Tide is a Barbados-flagged, UK-owned cargo ship.

USS Laboon intercepted and shot down one of the three anti-ship ballistic missiles targeting Star Nasia.

The Greek merchant marine ministry said the Star Nasia sustained material damage but the hull did not appear to have been breached and no injuries were reported among the Filipino crew, AFP reported.

The three missiles targeting M/V Morning Tide hit the water near the ship.

US forces on Monday conducted a strike in self-defense against two Houthi explosive uncrewed surface vehicles, CENTCOM said.

And early Sunday morning, it said, US forces "conducted a strike in self-defense against a Houthi land attack cruise missile."

Later Sunday morning, US forces struck four anti-ship cruise missiles, all of which were prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea, it added.

In an interview with Asharq al-Awsat, Lenderking stressed that the military actions taken by the United States and its allies are not aimed against Yemen and its people, but the military capabilities of the Houthis.

He spoke of Iran's role in destabilizing the situation across the Middle East, pointing out that this has been a hallmark of the Iranian regime since 1979.

"Instead of seeking constructive diplomatic solutions to conflicts in the region, Tehran has repeatedly sought destabilization," he said.