New York-Sana
During a meeting at the UN Security Council today, United Nations officials called on the United States to cancel its decision to designate the Yemeni “Ansar Allah” movement a “terrorist organization,” warning that it would impede peace efforts in Yemen.
Reuters quoted the UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths as saying, “We fear that there will be an unavoidable negative impact on efforts to bring the parties together in Yemen,” adding that “the American decision will contribute to increasing the likelihood of famine in Yemen and must be canceled on humanitarian grounds. As soon as possible".
For his part, David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Program, described the US decision as a "disaster", while Mark Lowcock, the UN aid official, warned that this step would drag Yemen into famine on a large scale.
In turn, a spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said that the latter "supports his officials' call on Washington to reverse its decision."
Last Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that his country intends to classify the Yemeni Ansar Allah movement in what Washington calls "the black list of terrorist organizations."