Houthi rebels challenge US, UK over Yemen bombings

The Houthi rebels Yemen today they challenged USA and to United Kingdomcountries to which they declared an “open war” after the bombings against several insurgent positions that have raised fears about the opening of a new front in the conflict in the Gaza Strip.

Around 2:00 a.m. in Yemen (23:00 GMT on Thursday), the United States and the United Kingdom launched more than seventy attacks against several Houthi military positions in at least six provinces of Yemen, in response to the insurgents’ actions against merchant ships in the Red Sea.

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According to the rebels’ military spokesman, Yahya Sarea, these bombings They left five dead among the ranks of the Houthiswhich soon launched a barrage of missiles against the military ships of the international naval coalition and declared an “open war” against Washington and London.

In support of the Palestinians in Gaza, the Houthis have launched dozens of attacks since mid-November against vessels linked to Israel or heading towards Israeli ports, in an attempt to exert economic pressure on the Jewish state to cease its operations in the Palestinian enclave.

However, the repercussions of these actions on international maritime trade have forced several Western countries to respond, since more than 50 nations have been directly affected by the disruption of traffic in the Red Sea, through which around 15% passes. of global maritime trade.

Houthis threaten action

United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, New Zealand and Korea issued a joint statement in which they justified that the action occurred in defense of international trade and those who transit the Red Sea.

However, the Houthis called these attacks “unjustifiable,” even “terrorist,” and promised that these actions will not go unanswered.

““The Yemeni response is legitimate within the framework of the sacred defense of Yemen (…) The Americans and the British must not believe that they will escape punishment,” the insurgents’ Supreme Political Council said in a statement, calling the Western attacks “a flagrant violation of all laws.”

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In addition to promising that both Washington and London “will pay a high price” for these attacks, they threatened to demonstrate that “Yemen is a graveyard of invaders,” appearing unmoved by a possible large-scale military intervention in the country, already burdened by a war started in 2014.

Attacks on ships continue

The strikes primarily targeted guided missile and drone launch sites that the Houthis use for their attacks in the Red Sea, and were intended to destroy the insurgents’ military capabilities, according to Washington.

However, the insurgents assured that they will continue to prevent the navigation of ships towards Israel.

“Yemen continues with its religious and human position, and he will stand by Gaza with all he can. “This aggression gives him more resilience and strength.”, said on the X network Mohamed Abdelsalam, one of the spokespersons for the Houthis, a movement backed by Iran.

In fact, the British Navy reported this Friday that a missile fired at a ship off the coast of Yemen hit the water without causing casualties or damage, while it has also recorded another incident off the coast of Aden.

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Great concern in the Middle East

The operation against the Houthis occurred just hours after the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, concluded a tour of the Middle East with the aim of creating consensus to try to prevent the war in Gaza from spreading.

However, fears of an expansion of the conflict on other fronts after the bombings have set off all the alarms in the region, where Saudi Arabia was the first country to call for “moderation” and to condemn the American and British attacks directed against the insurgents. .

They were followed by the rest of the Arab countries, which recalled that to avoid a new conflict it is necessary to first put an end to the war in Gaza, which is provoking an angry reaction from groups related to Iran such as the Houthis, the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah or the pro-Iran militias in Iraq.

The insurgents have also recalled that they will cease their attacks on ships in the Red Sea if the war in Gaza stops first, a promise that several Western countries are calling into question due to the influence that the Houthis are gaining with these actions in support of Gaza.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of insurgent supporters beat the drums of war at a mass rally in Sanaa, carrying banners reading: “This is what we wanted, a confrontation with the United States.”

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