US Special Envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking said that what the Ansar Allah group (Houthis) is doing in the Red Sea is obstructing peace efforts, accusing them of exploiting the Gaza war as a pretext to extend their power in the region.
In an interview with Tel Aviv Tribune, Lenderking stressed that Washington does not want to postpone achieving peace in Yemen due to other regional events, denouncing the Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea and calling for them to be stopped quickly.
He drew attention to the ongoing efforts to rescue a Greek oil tanker that was attacked in the Red Sea, stressing the need to unload its cargo and for everyone to cooperate to prevent a maritime and environmental disaster.
Commenting on the Israeli bombing that targeted the port of Hodeidah in Yemen, the US envoy stressed that his country would not justify any attack from any party that harms civilians, noting that “an international coalition is directing strikes at the Houthis’ military capabilities in response to the attacks against ships.”
He pointed out that this prevents Yemenis from achieving their daily needs and creates a further distance towards achieving a serious peace process, stressing the importance of moving from the truce in Yemen that began in April 2022 in order to launch a better future for the Yemeni people.
Regarding his visit to the United Kingdom, Lenderking said that he had the opportunity to consult with London on developing Yemen and helping it economically, and how to push towards a comprehensive peace there, but the Houthis stopped the roadmap to achieve this, accusing them of obstructing this effort.
He reiterated his country’s and the international community’s position on the necessity of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the return of the detained prisoners and the end of the ongoing conflict.
It is noteworthy that late last month, the Houthis broadcast scenes of storming and burning a Greek ship in the Red Sea, which they said “violated the decision to ban entry to the ports of occupied Palestine,” and they pledged to continue targeting ships linked to Israel in support of Gaza.
The Greek-flagged tanker “Sunion” has a capacity of 150,000 tons of crude oil, and its crew was evacuated after it was targeted by several projectiles off Hodeidah in Yemen.
Since the war on Gaza, the Houthis have targeted Israeli or Israeli-linked cargo ships with missiles and drones in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Indian Ocean and all the way to the Mediterranean Sea.