ISTANBUL

Beijing said on Friday that it opposes US sanctions on Houthis, which also target China-based firms.

“We firmly oppose the US abusing unilateral sanctions ... such moves violate international laws and basic norms in international relations,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a news conference in Beijing.

His remarks came after the US Treasury Department sanctioned 32 individuals and entities on Thursday in what officials described as the largest action targeting Iran-backed Houthis, claiming the networks facilitate weapons procurement and illicit financing.

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) alleged the networks are "part of the Houthis' global illicit fundraising, smuggling, and weapons procurement operations" spanning Yemen, China, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands.

Since November 2023, the group has targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where more than 64,700 victims have been killed in an Israeli genocide.