NEW YORK: G7 foreign ministers have called on Iran to stop arming and supporting Yemen’s Houthis as escalating fighting threatens Saudi Arabia, civilian shipping and regional security.
The statement was issued Monday after a G7 meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The group also urged the Houthis to immediately halt military operations and attacks on civilian vessels.
Foreign ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States condemned what they described as escalating Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia.
The ministers called on the Houthis to end all military actions, threats and attacks against civilian shipping and return to the political process in good faith. They also warned that the escalation could threaten international trade and global stability.
The G7 specifically called on Iran to end its arming and support of the Houthi movement, putting Tehran’s role in the Yemen conflict at the center of the statement.
The G7 statement comes as Houthi forces have expanded their control along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, including areas near the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The waterway connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is a major route for international shipping, making the fighting a broader concern for trade and energy supplies.
Saudi Arabia has responded with airstrikes as the Houthis have launched drones and missiles toward Saudi territory. The renewed fighting has also raised concerns over further disruption to maritime traffic.
The escalation has triggered a major humanitarian crisis in Yemen. More than 120,000 people have been displaced inside the country, while thousands have crossed the Red Sea toward Djibouti, according to the World Food Programme and other humanitarian agencies.
The World Food Programme said the conflict has worsened food insecurity in a country heavily dependent on imports, while humanitarian operations are facing increasing difficulties in areas controlled by the Houthis.
The United Kingdom has also announced limited military support for Saudi Arabia, including the deployment of a Royal Air Force Voyager aircraft for defensive air-to-air refueling.
The latest G7 warning comes as senior officials gather in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, with the Yemen conflict increasingly tied to wider concerns over regional security, humanitarian conditions and the safety of key shipping routes.
