The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating two individuals and five entities that have facilitated weapons procurement for Ansarallah, commonly referred to as the Houthis.
OFAC is also designating one individual and one company, as well as identifying one vessel, that have facilitated the shipment of commodities, the sale of which provides an important funding stream to the Houthis that aids in their weapons procurement.
As explained, this action targets key actors who have enabled the Houthis to generate revenue and acquire a range of materials to manufacture the advanced weaponry they are now using to conduct ongoing terrorist attacks against commercial ships. Since November 2023, the Houthis have deployed a range of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles to attack merchant vessels and their crews in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, killing innocent civilians, causing severe damage to commercial ships, and threatening global freedom of navigation.
The Houthis’ continued, indiscriminate, and reckless attacks against unarmed commercial vessels are made possible by their access to key components necessary for the production of their missiles and UAVs.
…said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson.
Houthi procurement activities in the people’s republic of China
Ali Abd-al-Wahhab Muhammad al-Wazir (al-Wazir) is a PRC-based Houthi-affiliated individual who plays a key role in procuring materials that enable Houthi forces to manufacture advanced conventional weapons inside Yemen. He uses his PRC-based company, Guangzhou Tasneem Trading Company Limited (Guangzhou Tasneem), to obtain these items and ship them to Yemen. Guangzhou Tasneem is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Tasneem Trading Company Limited.
Al-Wazir is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Ansarallah. Guangzhou Tasneem is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Ansarallah. Tasneem Trading Company Limited is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for owning or controlling Guangzhou Tasneem.
Houthi procurement activities in Oman
Houthi leaders transfer weapons-grade materials purchased from PRC-based and other international suppliers into Yemen using import-export firms located in third countries. One such entity, the Oman-based International Smart Digital Interface Limited Liability Company (ISDI), has purchased and facilitated the transfer of cruise missile components, manufacturing equipment, and other dual-use materials into Yemen. ISDI and its operator, Muaadh Ahmed Mohammed al-Haifi (al-Haifi), coordinate with senior Houthi members to complete these procurements. ISDI’s and al-Haifi’s activities have directly enabled Houthi attacks against U.S. allies in the region. In 2020, for example, Houthi forces struck a Saudi Aramco facility in the region using a Quds-type land attack cruise missile that contained components that ISDI had sourced from a PRC-based supplier. In September 2023, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security added ISDI and al-Haifi to the Entity List.
June 17 U.S. Central Command Update
In the past 24 hours, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) forces successfully destroyed four Houthi radars and one uncrewed surface vessel (USV) in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
Additionally, USCENTCOM forces successfully destroyed one… pic.twitter.com/8YKqaeudXk
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 17, 2024
