Iran Blacklists US Envoy in Yemen, Reciprocating US Move
by Reuters and Algemeiner Staff
Supporters of the Houthi movement shout slogans as they attend a rally to mark the 4th anniversary of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen’s war, in Sanaa, Yemen, March 26, 2019. Photo: Reuters / Khaled Abdullah.
Iran has blacklisted the US ambassador in Yemen, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday, a day after Washington imposed terrorism-related sanctions on Tehran’s envoy to the Yemeni Houthis.
Tehran’s move, which allows the seizure of assets within Iran of sanctioned individuals, is symbolic and unlikely to have any impact on the US ambassador.
“Highlighting his key role in Yemen’s humanitarian crisis, Iran puts Christopher Henzel’s name on its sanctions list,” the ministry said in a statement on its website.
On Tuesday, the US Treasury blacklisted Hasan Irlu, Iran’s ambassador to the Houthis, describing him as a pillar of Iranian efforts to project its power in Yemen, Syria and elsewhere.
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Yemen has been locked in conflict since 2014, when the Iran-aligned Houthis group seized Sanaa, the capital, and then much of the country’s north.
Iran’s regional foe Saudi Arabia is leading a Sunni Arab coalition fighting the Houthis in the impoverished state on the tip of the Arabian peninsula. The conflict is widely seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
