U.S. sanctions individuals, companies for alleged weapons procurement, smuggling for Houthis

The U.S. announced Wednesday news sanctions against individuals and companies for their alleged involvement in facilitating weapons procurement and smuggling for the Yemeni Houthi group.

The sanctions are aimed at one individual and three companies accused of supplying dual-use and military-grade materials for the manufacture and deployment of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that "threaten the interests" of the U.S. and its allies, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

The U.S. also sanctioned one entity linked to "illicit Houthi commercial shipments," and the entity's two vessels, one of which allegedly transported goods on behalf of a Houthi financial network and Iranian military affiliates, said Miller.

The sanctions come amid rising tensions between Iran and Israel.

Iran fired nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday, an act it claimed was in retaliation for Israel's actions, including the assassination of a Hamas leader in Tehran in late July and the killings of Hezbollah and Iranian military personnel in Beirut in late September.

Israel has vowed to retaliate.

The backdrop of the escalation is Israel's offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 41,600 victims, most of them women and children, following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023.

The conflict also spread to Lebanon with Israel launching deadly strikes across that country, which have killed more than 960 victims and injured over 2,700 since Sept. 23.