Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the US, has called for an international campaign to defeat the Houthis, describing them as an armed terrorist force, and warning that their activities threaten regional security, global trade and energy markets.
In an opinion article published in The New York Times on Tuesday, she argued that the movement must be confronted with the same international resolve that helped defeat other terrorist organizations.
Princess Reema highlighted the actions of Ebtehal bint Abdullah, a Riyadh Air passenger services agent, who helped evacuate travelers and assist the wounded after a Houthi missile struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Oct. 10.
Despite being injured herself, Abdullah continued helping victims and guiding paramedics through the terminal. The attack killed 13 people.
The Houthis’ leader, Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi, has spent two decades building a network with Iranian backing, Princess Reema wrote, accusing the movement of repeatedly breaking peace agreements and using truces to rearm.
The Houthis had launched more than 1,000 ballistic missiles and drones into Saudi Arabia since March 2016, she wrote.
She added that the movement’s threats extend beyond Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The militia has threatened to close the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, through which about 10 percent of global trade passes, while strikes on Saudi energy facilities this month helped push oil prices above $100 a barrel.
Saudi Arabia has supported Yemen’s government since 2015, following the Houthi capture of Sanaa, and remains one of Yemen’s largest humanitarian donors.
Yemeni government forces continue to conduct offensives along the Red Sea coast, in Jawf and in Marib, with Saudi air support, and have seized more than 750 tonnes of weapons bound for the militia.
Princess Reema also called for the dismantling of the Houthi war economy, including its extortion networks and front companies.
She said Saudi Arabia had closed its financial system to the Houthis and other terrorist groups, while working with partners to enforce sanctions and supporting Yemen’s government in confiscating weapons and money. She urged all countries to designate the Houthis as a terrorist organization, noting that the US had already done so.
She accused the movement of indoctrinating children, including students as young as 10 who are compelled to chant “Death to America,” and sending thousands of children into combat.
Comparing the Houthis to Daesh before it seized Mosul in Iraq and declared a caliphate, Princess Reema warned that the international community risked underestimating the group and the only way they could be defeated is through an internationally backed campaign led by Yemenis, similar to the coalition effort against Daesh.
The princess called on countries to cut off Houthi financing, stop weapons smuggling by sea, and provide Yemen’s government with the support needed to achieve its objectives. Ending the Houthis’ armed campaign, she argued, is essential to reaching a Yemeni-led political settlement.