The UN Security Council discussed developments in Yemen under the agenda item "The situation in the Middle East." During the session, representatives of Saudi Arabia and Yemen called on the Security Council to address Houthi attacks and threats to maritime security around the Red Sea.
Saudi Arabia warns of Red Sea threats
Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Abdulaziz al-Wasil, said the Houthis’ threats to civilians and international shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait put regional stability, global trade, and international peace and security at risk.
Al-Wasil said the Security Council needed to take decisive action in response to the escalating attacks. He called on the Council to assess the risks posed by the developments and the threats arising from them with a high degree of responsibility.
Holding the Houthis responsible for a dangerous escalation involving attacks on civilians, civilian targets, and vital facilities in Saudi Arabia, Al-Wasil warned that attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, as well as threats to maritime navigation, could have consequences extending beyond Yemen and the Middle East.
Yemen calls for measures against Houthis
Yemen’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Abdullah Ali Fadhel Al Saadi, accused the Houthis of escalating attacks, recruiting children, and displacing thousands of civilians. Al Saadi called on the Security Council to take decisive action against the Houthis.
Al Saadi said the violence in Yemen threatened people’s lives, the security of neighboring countries, the region, and one of the world’s major waterways, adding that the conflict’s humanitarian consequences revealed the scale of the violence. Al Saadi said more than 100 children were killed in September alone.
Arguing that the Houthi threat had ceased to be an internal matter that could be contained within Yemen’s borders, Al Saadi said the attacks threatened freedom of navigation. He called on the Security Council to adopt a clear resolution holding the Houthis responsible for escalating tensions.
Al Saadi also called for practical measures to restrict Houthi financing, smuggling networks, weapons supplies, and the transfer of technology and technical expertise.
