On Friday morning, the United States and Britain launched strikes on targets in areas under the control of the Houthi rebels in Yemen, after they targeted commercial ships in the Red Sea for weeks in solidarity with the Gaza Strip, which is witnessing a war with Israel.
US President Joe Biden announced that the United States and Britain had “successfully” launched strikes on Iran-backed rebels, in response to their attacks on ships in the Red Sea, while British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that the strikes were “necessary” and “proportionate.”
The Houthis, in turn, stressed that there was "no justification" for the strikes, vowing to continue attacks on ships linked to Israel.
The Houthi-affiliated "Al-Masirah" channel said on its website that "American aggression with British participation" targets sites in the capital, Sana'a, and other cities.
The channel indicated that the strikes targeted "Al-Dailami Air Base" located near the airport of the capital, Sana'a, and "the vicinity of Hodeidah Airport, areas in Zabid District, Kahlan Camp east of the city of Saada, Taiz Airport, the 22nd Brigade camp in Al-Ta'iziyah District, and the airport in Abs District."
Reporters in Sanaa and Hodeidah reported hearing successive strikes and aircraft flying, followed by the sounds of ambulances.
Video clips circulated on social media showed explosions lighting up the sky, loud bangs, and the roar of planes.
One of them wrote that they were strikes targeting Al-Dailami Air Base, while the videographer said that he showed “the missile strike that was launched a short while ago.”
Agence France-Presse could not immediately verify the authenticity of the scenes.
Biden said in a statement, “At my direction, US military forces - in cooperation with the United Kingdom and with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands - carried out successful strikes against a number of targets in Yemen that are used by the rebels, but not the Houthis, to endanger freedom of navigation in one of the most vital waterways.” In the world".
He described the strikes as a "direct response" to a total of "27 attacks" launched by the Houthis on ships, which included "the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history."
Biden continued, "These targeted strikes are a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks."
In a joint statement, the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Korea, and the United Kingdom declared, “Our goal remains to de-escalate tensions and restore stability in the Red Sea.”
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin explained that the strikes targeted radars and infrastructure for drones and missiles, noting that the goal was to "disable and weaken the Houthis' ability to expose sailors to danger and threaten international trade."
For his part, Sunak said in a statement, “Despite repeated warnings from the international community, the Houthis continued to carry out attacks in the Red Sea, again this week against British and American warships,” adding, “This cannot continue... so we have taken measures.” "limited, necessary and proportionate in self-defense."
In the first Arab reaction to the Western strikes, Saudi Arabia expressed “deep concern” following the strikes launched by the United States and Britain on several sites in Yemen, calling for “restraint” and at the same time stressing the “importance of stability” in the Red Sea region.
Following the strikes, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Houthi government, Hussein Al-Ezzi, vowed to respond, saying, “Our country was subjected to a massive aggressive attack by American and British ships, submarines, and warplanes (...) America and Britain must prepare to pay a heavy price.”
Hours before these strikes, rebel leader Din Abdul Malik al-Houthi confirmed that any American attack “will never be without a response.”
Houthi spokesman Muhammad Abdel Salam said in a post on the “X” platform later, “We confirm that there is absolutely no justification for this aggression against Yemen. There was no threat to international navigation in the Red and Arabian Seas, and the targeting was and will continue to affect Israeli ships or those heading to the ports of Palestine.” "occupied."
This comes a week after 12 countries led by the United States warned the Houthis that they would face consequences if they continued targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, one of the most important waterways for global trade.
During the past weeks, the Houthis launched more than 25 attacks targeting commercial ships they suspected of being linked to Israel or heading to Israeli ports, near the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The latest of which was the Houthis targeting “an American ship that was providing support to Israel,” using more than 20 drones and missiles over the Red Sea, which were shot down by American and British forces, in what London described as “the largest attack” carried out by the Houthis since the start of the Gaza war.
Washington formed an international coalition in December - dubbed "Operation Prosperity Sentinel" - to protect shipping in the region through which 12% of global trade flows.
Then on January 3, 12 countries led by the United States warned the Houthis of “consequences” unless they immediately stop attacks on commercial ships.
In a resolution on Wednesday, the UN Security Council called for an “immediate” halt to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, and also called on all countries to respect the arms embargo imposed on them.
It seems that the tipping point for the Western allies came early Thursday, when the US military said that the Houthis fired an anti-ship ballistic missile at a shipping lane in the Gulf of Aden.
The intensified attacks caused shipping companies to divert their ships to circumvent the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, raising fears that the global economy would be harmed.
But Western strikes threaten to turn the already tense situation in the Middle East into a broader conflict that pits the United States and Israel against Iran and its regional allies.
The Houthis control vast parts of northern Yemen, most notably the capital, Sanaa, and they are part of the "axis of resistance" led by Iran, which also includes other anti-Israel parties supported by Tehran in the region, namely the Lebanese Hezbollah, Iraqi factions, and the Palestinian Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements.
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