ISTANBUL

The US Treasury Department sanctioned two individuals and five entities on Tuesday for smuggling petroleum products and laundering money to benefit Yemen's Houthi group.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated the network spanning Yemen and the United Arab Emirates as being among the "most significant" importers of petroleum products that benefit the Iran-backed group.

"The Houthis collaborate with opportunistic businessmen to reap enormous profits from the importation of petroleum products and to enable the group's access to the international financial system," said Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender.

The sanctions target Muhammad Al-Sunaydar, Arkan Mars Petroleum Company for Oil Products Imports, Arkan Mars Petroleum DMCC, Arkan Mars Petroleum FZE, Yahya Mohammed Al Wazir, Al-Saida Stone for Trading and Agencies and the Amran Cement Factory.

All property and interests of the designated entities in the US or under US control are now blocked and entities owned 50% or more by blocked persons face similar restrictions.

The US State Department designated the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) on Feb. 16, 2024, and later re-designated the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) on March 5.

US forces conducted 481 airstrikes against Yemen between February and June, with 280 in April as President Donald Trump pressured the group to halt Red Sea operations.

The Houthis have intensified missile and drone strikes on Israel since Tel Aviv resumed attacks on the Gaza Strip in March after two months of a shaky ceasefire.

Since November 2023, the group has also targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea in support of Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 59,000 victims have been killed in an Israeli genocide.