Yemeni Government Welcomes US Announcement On Seizing Ship With Iranian-Made Missiles

The government of Yemen welcomes the US Defense Department's announcement on detaining a ship in the Arabian Sea with Iranian-made missiles aboard, Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said on Friday, adding that providing the Yemeni Houthi rebels with weapons constituted a violation of UN Security Council resolutions

CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th February, 2020) The government of Yemen welcomes the US Defense Department's announcement on detaining a ship in the Arabian Sea with Iranian-made missiles aboard, Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said on Friday, adding that providing the Yemeni Houthi rebels with weapons constituted a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

On Thursday, the US Navy boarded the ship and found a large cache of Iranian-made weapons, including 150 "Dehlavieh" anti-tank guided missiles, which are Iranian-manufactured copies of Russian Kornet ATGMs. Iran has repeatedly been accused of providing weapons to the Yemeni rebels, something Tehran has denied.

"We welcome the announcement by US Central Command that US Navy seized an Iranian arms ship on its way to Houthis militia, carrying 150 Iranian anti-tank missiles and 3 (land to air) missiles in flagrant violation of [the UN] Security Council [resolutions] to ban the supply of weapons to Houthis," al-Eryani wrote on Twitter.

The minister added that Iran played "a major role" in the tensions that are taking place on Yemeni soil, and called on the international community and the UN Security Council to impose sanctions on Tehran to stop weapons supplies to the Houthis.

"We urge the int'l community, SC to impose deterrent sanctions on Tehran regime &exert pressure to stop arms &experts smuggling to Houthis which constitutes blatant interference in Yemeni affairs &violation of sovereignty, international law &SC resolutions related to Yemeni crisis," the minister wrote.

Yemen has been facing a severe humanitarian crisis caused by the ongoing military conflict between the internationally-recognized government headed by President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi and the Houthi rebels since 2015. The country's north, including the capital of Sanaa, is controlled by the Houthi movement.

In the most recent wave of escalation in late January, 80 people were killed and dozens more injured in a missile attack on a Yemeni military camp in the country's northeast. UN Special Envoy on Yemen Martin Griffiths then arrived in Sanaa to hold talks with the Houthis on reducing the military escalation between the warring parties.

The Yemeni conflict has led to an acute humanitarian crisis and an outbreak of cholera in the country. According to the United Nations, some 22 million people in Yemen � or 75 percent of the country's population � need humanitarian assistance.