Jewish peers urge UK to proscribe Houthis as terrorist group

Two Jewish peers have urged the Government to proscribe Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis as a terrorist organisation, warning ministers should not wait for further attacks on British interests before acting.

Conservative peer Lord Polak and Labour peer Lord Mendelsohn have written to the Foreign Secretary calling for the group to be banned under the Terrorism Act 2000.

The cross-party intervention comes amid renewed concern over the Houthis’ attacks on commercial shipping and their activities around the Bab al-Mandab, the strategically important shipping route connecting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

In their letter, the peers describe the Houthis as “Iran’s most active and effective foreign proxy” and say they now pose “a direct threat to British interests and global shipping”.

They point to more than 100 attacks on commercial shipping since November 2023, including attacks involving British-linked vessels and the Royal Navy.

“The present position is no longer tenable,” they write. “The United Kingdom should not wait for further attacks on British interests or international shipping before acting.”

The Houthis are not currently among the organisations proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000. Under the legislation, the Home Secretary can ban an organisation if they believe it is concerned in terrorism and consider proscription proportionate.

Polak and Mendelsohn argue Britain’s position has become increasingly difficult to justify after the UK took military action against Houthi targets without formally designating the group as a terrorist organisation.

Quoting former British ambassador to Yemen Edmund Fitton-Brown, they say Britain considers the Houthis “dangerous enough to bomb, but not dangerous enough to call terrorists”.

The peers also highlight what they describe as an inconsistency in the Government’s approach to Iran and its network of proxies.

The IRGC was formally designated under the National Security (State Threats) Act in July, making it a criminal offence to express support for the organisation or assist it. The legislation gives the Home Secretary powers to designate bodies involved in hostile activity linked to foreign states, in a system similar to terrorist proscription.

Polak and Mendelsohn write: “We cannot take action against the sponsor while leaving one of its principal instruments untouched.”

They also cite findings by a UN Panel of Experts concerning cooperation between the Houthis and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, despite ideological differences between the two groups.

Previous concerns over proscribing the Houthis have included the potential impact on humanitarian work in Yemen. The Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation has previously said the risk of disrupting aid to Yemen was a reason for their continued non-proscription.

But Polak and Mendelsohn argue those concerns should no longer prevent action, pointing to Houthi detention of UN personnel and interference with humanitarian operations.

They conclude: “We therefore urge the Government to proscribe the Houthis as a matter of urgency.”