Houthi Rebels in Yemen Occupy U.S. Embassy Compound, Hold Hostages

The U.S. is working to free Yemeni security personnel taken hostage after Iran-backed Houthi rebels stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Yemen’s capital San’a, U.S. officials said.

The U.S. diplomatic mission in San’a has been suspended since 2015, when Houthi rebels took control of the city. Since then, U.S. Embassy personnel have worked on Yemeni affairs from Saudi Arabia, which backs the government ousted by the insurgents.

Houthi rebels stormed the embassy compound in San’a on Wednesday and took U.S.-employed security personnel hostage. Most of the personnel have been freed, according to a State Department spokesman, who said the U.S. was making unceasing diplomatic efforts to release the rest.

“The majority of those who have been detained are no longer in custody,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said earlier this week.

Mohammad al-Bukhaiti, a member of the political council of Ansar Allah, the Houthis’ name for their movement, said he wasn’t aware of the hostage incident at the former U.S. Embassy.

Shortly after taking office, the Biden administration in February removed the Houthi rebels from the U.S.’s list of designated terrorist groups to ease the delivery of aid and alleviate a dire humanitarian crisis, and to foster dialogue between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed government.

Since then, the war has continued unabated with no breakthrough in a United Nations-sponsored peace process launched in late 2018.

Houthi forces have been emboldened by territorial gains in recent weeks as they have intensified a monthslong offensive on Marib city, the last northern stronghold for the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government, and an energy-production hub.

Houthi rebels have put Marib under sustained attacks for nearly a year, held off only by government and coalition airstrikes. Capturing the oil-rich region would deal the Houthis a significant victory in the seven-year war. The government has since 2015 been based in the southern city of Aden, with most of its officials based abroad, chiefly in Saudi Arabia.

The U.N. Security Council on Tuesday blacklisted three Houthi leaders for orchestrating the rebels’ military efforts in Marib, conducting cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia and smuggling weapons.