Abdullah Abdulqadir Al-Alimi, deputy chair of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, accused the Houthis of acting in the interests of the Iranian government by rejecting the peace roadmap of Saudi Arabia and Oman and escalating tensions in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb.

In his remarks at the United Nations, he said these actions have «turned one of the most important waterways in the world into a tool of pressure and bargaining in Iran’s confrontation with the world».

The Yemeni official also said that the Houthis’ use of shipping security as a tool for extortion, in addition to threatening Yemen, also takes the global economy hostage. He emphasized that protecting Bab al-Mandeb is a shared responsibility at the regional and international level that Yemen alone cannot shoulder.