Yemen's Houthis slam UN resolution as ‘political game'

SANAA, Yemen

Yemen’s Houthi group on Thursday denigrated a UN Security Council resolution demanding the group to halt Red Sea attacks as a “political game.”

“The US is the one violating international law," Ali al-Houthi, a member of the group’s Supreme Political Council, said in a statement on X.

He called Houthi attacks against commercial ships in the Red Sea “legitimate defense.”

The Houthi leader vowed that any action against the Yemeni group “will get a reaction” and called for “an immediate halt to Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip that undermine regional rights, freedoms, peace, and security."

The UN Security Council on Wednesday passed a resolution condemning attacks by Yemen’s Houthis on ships in the Red Sea.

The resolution demands that the Houthis immediately cease all attacks, which impede global commerce and undermine navigational rights and freedoms.

The Houthis have targeted vessels in the southern Red Sea and warned they will attack all Israeli-bound ships. They say the attacks are meant to support Palestinians as they face Israel's "aggression and siege" in Gaza.

The Red Sea is one of the world's most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments.

Last month, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the creation of a multinational mission to counter Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio