Iran Press/Middle East: UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said it was imperative that the United States swiftly grant the necessary licenses and exemptions to ensure that principled humanitarian assistance can continue to reach all people ... without disruption.
He also said the United Nations was concerned that the designation may have a detrimental impact on efforts to resume the political process in Yemen, as well as to polarize even more the positions of the parties to the conflict, Reuters reported.
Aid organizations have said they may be prevented from operating in areas where millions are on the brink of famine.
A Houthi leader accused the outgoing US President Donald Trump's administration of terrorism and said the movement reserved the right to respond to any designation.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced late on Sunday that the state department would notify Congress of his intention to designate the Houthi movement - officially known as Ansarollah - as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) on 19 January, the day before Trump leaves office.
Three Houthi leaders - Abdul Malik al-Houthi, Abdul Khaliq Badr al-Din al-Houthi, and Abdullah Yahya al-Hakim - will also be listed as Specially Designated Global Terrorists.
Saudi Arabia, with the support of the United States, the United Arab Emirates, and several other countries, has launched a military invasion of Yemen in March 2015 and has besieged its land, sea, and air.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have so far killed more than sixteen thousand Yemenis, wounded tens of thousands of others, and displaced millions more.
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