Why Did the Security Council End the UN Mission in Hodeidah?

NYN | Reports and Analyses 

The United Nations Security Council voted on Tuesday to end the mandate of the UN Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement, known as UNMHA, after six consecutive years of renewal since its establishment in 2019 following the Stockholm Agreement.

United States Justifies Decision by Citing “Houthi Intransigence”

The United States justified the decision to terminate the mission by accusing the Ansar Allah movement (the Houthis) of “obstructing the mission’s work.” U.S. Deputy Ambassador to the Security Council Tammy Bruce said that what she described as “Houthi intransigence” had stripped the mission of its purpose, arguing that its continuation was no longer beneficial.

Britain Leads the Draft Resolution with U.S. Support

As customary, the United Kingdom submitted the draft resolution to the Security Council, a move aligned with the U.S. position on the Yemen file. Critics argue that this approach is part of a broader policy of political pressure on Sana’a and describe it as serving the American–Zionist agenda in the region.

Undeclared Objectives and Growing Pressure on Sana’a

Observers believe that ending the UNMHA mission comes within the context of U.S. and Western efforts to intensify political and diplomatic pressure on Sana’a and to reshuffle the cards in the Hodeidah file, which is considered a vital economic and humanitarian lifeline for Yemen.

Russia and China Abstain from the Vote

Indicating divisions within the Security Council, both Russia and China abstained from voting on the British–U.S. draft resolution without exercising their veto power, reflecting reservations about the mechanism for ending the mission or the timing of the decision and its potential humanitarian and security repercussions.