The mission issued a statement on Friday after The Associated Press published a report alleging Iran’s support to “Houthi rebels”, a term Western officials and media use to refer to Yemen’s ruling Ansarullah resistance movement that has led the Arab country’s maritime operations against Israel-linked ships since mid-November in a bid to stop the regime’s war on Gaza.

The report, citing American officials, alleged that Iran provides financial and intelligence support as well as training to Yemen in its military operations against Israel-linked ships and US warships in international waters. The officials also accused Iran of continuing to send arms to Yemen in violation of existing UN sanctions.

“The US supposes that it can isolate and defeat the resistance movement in Yemen through using its military power and political dominance on the UN Security Council (UNSC), with the aim that either Iran is frightened and cuts its ties with Ansarullah or violates UNSC resolutions to put itself in the non-compliant position,” the Iranian mission said in its statement.

“Iran knows how to thwart the US strategy in a way that not only strengthens Ansarullah but also ensures compliance with the pertinent resolutions”, the mission further said.

In January, the UNSC adopted a resolution proposed by the US and Japan to put sanctions on Ansarullah over its maritime operations which the movement has stressed will continue until the Israeli regime stops its Gaza war and lifts its blockade of the Palestinian territory.

A month later, the United States also blacklisted Ansarullah as a terror organization, several weeks after it launched joint airstrikes with the UK against Yemeni positions over the maritime operations against Israel-linked vessels.

Yemen sees the ongoing airstrikes as an act of aggression against its soil and has hit US and British ships in response. Yemen also rejects the two Western states’ claims that their airstrikes are aimed at protecting international shipping, saying that its maritime operations, carried out so far in the Red and Arabian seas as well as the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, only target Israeli vessels or those heading toward ports in the occupied territories.