The legitimate government in Yemen vowed to file a complaint to the United Nations Security Council after the Iran-backed Houthi militias appointed a Yemeni ambassador to Tehran.
Government spokesman Rajeh Badie told Asharq Al-Awsat that the appointment was a “flagrant” violation of international laws and norms and Security Council resolutions on Yemen.
He demanded that the council and UN assume their responsibilities over this issue.
The Houthis have taken their covert ties with Iran out into the open with such a move, he noted, saying it confirms that the militias are one of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ arms in the region.
The militias had on Sunday announced that a “presidential decree was issued appointing Ibrahim Mohammed Mohammed al-Dailami as an ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary for the republic of Yemen” to Iran.
Iranian media was quick to hail the appointment in clear recognition of the Houthis’ rule over Sanaa and Tehran’s support for their coup against the legitimacy.
Dailami is considered a veteran member of the Houthis and had received his sectarian education in Iran. He is director of the Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV.
Iranian media had circulated footage of Dailami and Houthi Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdulsalam during their meeting last week with Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and Foreign Minister Mohamed Javad Zarif. The Houthi delegation also met other Iranian officials and the ambassadors of Britain, Germany, Italy and France to Tehran.
Political analyst Najib Ghallab said the appointment of an envoy proves that Houthi-held regions in Yemen are effectively under Iran’s control. Tehran has used the Houthis as an armed group to serve its agenda, providing it with funds, weapons and “advisers”.
Iran is now following a new plan to directly use the Houthis to further its goals, whether by threatening navigation in the Red Sea or carrying out attacks against Yemen’s neighbors, he warned.
Its open recognition of the Houthis delivers a “clear message that Iran is playing a malign role in exporting terrorism and supporting destabilizing groups in the Arab world,” he continued.
