UN votes unanimously to extend sanctions on Yemen’s Houthis

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council has voted unanimously to extend the arms embargo on Yemen’s Houthi rebels and an asset freeze and travel ban on Houthi leaders and top officials until Nov. 15. The British-drafted resolution aopted Wednesday also extends the mandate of the U.N. panel of experts monitoring the sanctions until Dec. 15. After the vote, the council met behind closed doors to hear briefings by the U.N. special envoy for Yemen and the U.N. deputy humanitarian chief. Yemen has been convulsed by civil war since 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized the capital of Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, forcing the internationally recognized government to flee to the south, then to Saudi Arabia.