Trump administration sanctions Yemeni bank controlled by Houthis

The Trump administration sanctioned the International Bank of Yemen Y.S.C., along with a number of bank officials, for providing financial support to the Houthis, the U.S. State and Treasury Departments announced on Thursday.

“This action is part of a broader U.S. government effort to prevent Iran-backed Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and protect these critical waterways for global commerce,” Tammy Bruce, State Department spokesperson, wrote in a statement.

The Sa’ana-based branch is part of one of Yemen’s top international banks.

The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that IBY is controlled by the Houthis and “provides the terrorist group access to the bank’s Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications network to make international financial transactions,” including for oil purchases and sanctions evasion.

Treasury asserted that IBY has refused to comply with requests for transaction information “to avoid revealing the details” of Houthi confiscations of its opponents’ assets. IBY has also refused to move its operations outside of Houthi-controlled territory, contrary to the Central Bank of Yemen-Aden.

Kamal Hussain Al Jebry, IBY’s chairman of the board of directors; Ahmed Thabit Noman Al-Absi, IBY’s executive general manager; and Abdulkader Ali Bazara, IBY’s deputy general manager, were also sanctioned.

“The United States is committed to disrupting Houthi financial networks and banking access as part of our whole-of-government approach to eliminating Iran’s threat network,” Bruce wrote. “We are committed to supporting the internationally recognized government of Yemen’s efforts to ensure the country’s banking sector remains insulated from Houthi influence.”

© JNS