STORY
The UK has called on Iran to end its support for the Houthis after warning that recent attacks have caused a serious escalation of violence in Yemen and the wider region. The statement was delivered by Ambassador Kate Foster, the UK’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, at a UN Security Council meeting on Yemen.
The Government said recent incidents had included Houthi drone and missile strikes against Saudi Arabia, attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and violations of Yemeni airspace by Iranian aircraft. It said Iran’s longstanding support for the Houthis threatened Yemen’s stability and called for the group to focus on peace efforts rather than drawing the country into a wider regional conflict.
The UK also warned that the escalation was worsening an already serious humanitarian crisis. More than 22 million people in Yemen require humanitarian assistance, over 18 million face food insecurity and more than 2.2 million children under the age of five are acutely malnourished.
The Government said Yemen remained particularly vulnerable because of its dependence on food and fuel imports, while humanitarian funding was under pressure and drought threatened to increase food insecurity. It warned that a return to large scale conflict could turn the existing humanitarian situation into a catastrophe. The UK provided more than $180 million in humanitarian assistance to Yemen last year.
The statement also raised concerns about the continued detention of 73 UN employees and other humanitarian and civil society workers by the Houthis. Britain called for all those detained to be released immediately and unconditionally and said aid organisations must be allowed to operate safely and without obstruction.
The UK welcomed the appointment of Dr Afrah Al-Zouba as Yemen’s first female Foreign Minister and said it would work with the Yemeni Government on reforms and security. Britain also reaffirmed its support for the UN Special Envoy and for a UN-led political process aimed at reaching a peaceful settlement to the conflict.