U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07) introduced the Combating Houthi Threats and Aggression Act on Monday.
The bill would place sanctions on the Iranian-backed Houthi terrorist group and require that the Biden administration create reports detailing the intelligence on the terrorist group’s capabilities.
“Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists pose a direct threat to our servicemembers and the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” Green, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, said in a statement. “Despite knowing this, the Biden administration is dragging its feet. Until we understand the Houthis’ capabilities to threaten our national security and foreign policy efforts, our interests are even more at risk.”
We cannot allow the Houthis to continue terrorizing the region, threatening U.S. interests, and harassing commercial ships. That’s why I’m introducing the Combating Houthi Threats and Aggression Act. https://t.co/XICsAcAgLb pic.twitter.com/l2jsYAYOO4
— Rep. Mark Green (@RepMarkGreen) April 15, 2024
Green’s bill would specifically place sanctions on entities complicit in or who materially support Houthi attacks, past or present, including attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The bill would also mandate the creation of three reports regarding the capability of the Houthis to “threaten U.S. national security and foreign policy goals, hindrances to the freedom of navigation, and Houthi violations of the United Nations Arms Embargo to Yemen.”
Green said placing such sanctions on the Houthis and mandating that reports be created on the terrorist group’s capabilities will give the U.S. the “necessary” tools to protect servicemembers, national security, and the free navigation of the Red Sea.
“The threat posed by the Houthi terrorists and the Iranian Ayatollah that backs them cannot be taken lightly. My bill demands answers and brings accountability. American lives are at risk. We have a responsibility to protect Americans and defend our national security. My bill aims to do both,” Green said.
The bill explains that the U.S. policy is to work with its allies and partners to “safeguard maritime security in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden,” which includes “supporting interdiction efforts and by opposing attacks on international shipping that threaten the free flow of commerce, endanger innocent mariners, and violate international law.”
Green’s bill adds that such attacks “harm the global economy, destabilize the Middle East and Africa region, and undermine United States national security interests.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Mark Green” by Mark Green.
