The Yemeni group says it will continue to target Israeli-linked merchant ships until aid reaches Palestinians in Gaza.

The United States and the United Kingdom have imposed new sanctions on leaders of Yemen’s Houthisas the group is committed to continuing its work Attacks on Israeli-affiliated merchant ships until the aid reaches the Palestinians in Gaza.

The sanctions announced Thursday target four key Houthi officials over their roles in supporting or directing attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, according to the United States and United Kingdom.

“The Houthis’ ongoing terrorist attacks on commercial vessels and their civilian crews … threaten to disrupt international supply chains and freedom of navigation that are critical to global security, stability and prosperity,” said Brian Nelson, the U.S. Undersecretary of State for Treasury Department for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence said in a statement.

“Today’s joint action with the UK demonstrates our collective action to urge all authorities to stop these attacks.”

The sanctions included Houthi Defense Minister Mohamed Nasser al-Atifi; Houthi Naval Force Commander Muhammad Fadl Abd al-Nabi; Chief of Coastal Defense Forces Muhammad Ali al-Qadiri; and Muhammed Ahmad al-Talibi, whom the two governments described as the Houthi forces’ procurement director.

The United Kingdom said the four men were involved in acts that “threaten the peace, security and stability of Yemen.”

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement that the restrictions “reaffirm our clear message to the Houthis in recent weeks” and vowed to target those behind the “unacceptable and illegal actions” against shipping.

War against Gaza

The sanctions came after Houthi leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi vowed to continue attacks that have disrupted international trade in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

“Our country will continue its operations until food and medicine reach the people of Gaza,” al-Houthi said in a televised address on Thursday.

Since November, the Houthis have carried out dozens of attacks on commercial vessels they claimed were linked to Israel. They said the operations were intended to pressure Israel to end its war on Gaza.

The group’s leader added that US and British military actions in Yemen in response to the Houthi attacks would not affect their “will and determination.”

On Monday, a new round of attacks targeted an underground Houthi storage facility as well as missile and surveillance capabilities that the Iran-aligned group uses against shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthi attacks have disrupted international trade along a route that accounts for about 15 percent of global shipping traffic. Several shipping companies have rerouted their ships around the southern tip of Africa, delaying delivery times and adding another 3,000 to 3,500 nautical miles (6,000 km) to their route.

Also the USA renamed The Houthis were designated earlier this month as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” (SDGTs), a designation applied to those deemed to “threaten U.S. security.”

Hundreds of thousands of people have responded to the designation and attacks by the US and UK on targets in Yemen brought onto the street the Yemeni capital Sanaa and other cities to protest and show support for Palestinians in Gaza.