Houthis delay UN inspection of Safer oil tanker, despite danger

Houthis delay UN inspection of Safer oil tanker, despite danger

UNITED NATIONS--A UN mission to inspect a long-abandoned fuel tanker off the coast of Yemen, which threatens to rupture and cause a massive oil spill, has been pushed to March due to obstacles put up by the Iran-backed Houthis.

“We've hit a few delays with international shipping that were beyond our control and had some back and forth on signing documents, which has now been resolved,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters.

“For now, we think we can get there by early March. From our side we are doing everything possible to stick to that timeline and deploy the mission,” he said.

In November, Yemen's Houthi rebels said they had given the green light for a mission to assess the FSO Safer fuel tanker, which the UN initially planned for late January or early February.

The Iran-backed Houthis — who ousted the internationally-recognized government from much of Yemen's north after a war that erupted in 2014 — had previously denied access.

Sticking to the new timeline “will depend on continuous facilitation by the Ansar Allah authorities,” Dujarric said, using the official name of the Houthi movement.

“We have communicated to the (Houthi) authorities our concern over several logistical issues that remain pending,” he added. “We urgently