Washington Post: US doubles strikes on Houthis in Yemen as tensions with Israel escalate

The Washington Post quoted an American official as saying that confronting the Houthis in Yemen may require additional military and diplomatic action by countries inside and outside the Middle East.

The newspaper pointed out that the latest round of strikes on the Houthis occurred at a time when the United States and its ally Israel are seeking to stop a campaign of regional attacks launched by the Iranian-backed armed group.

The Biden administration launched new airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on Tuesday, as the United States and its ally Israel struggle to halt a campaign of regional attacks by the Iran-backed militant group.

The US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, said the attacks hit targets on Yemen’s coast and the capital, Sanaa, including a command center and facilities used to manufacture and store weapons. The operations, which also included Monday’s strikes, destroyed radar sites and one-way drones, Central Command said in a statement.

A video provided by the US Central Command showed a plane taking off from the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, stationed in the Red Sea.

The strikes are the latest in a year-long U.S.-led campaign aimed at halting persistent attacks by the Houthis, an armed group that operates as the de facto government in much of Yemen, on commercial and military vessels in nearby waters. The Houthi campaign has disrupted global shipping and inflicted heavy losses on U.S. allies who rely on the related revenue.

But aid groups have warned that the latest Israeli strikes, which have hit transport, ports and other infrastructure in Yemen, threaten to worsen already treacherous conditions for civilians caught up in a long-running civil war between the Houthis and Yemen's internationally recognized government.

In a new letter, a group of international and Yemeni organizations, including Oxfam, CARE, Mercy Corps and Save the Children, said the airstrikes on December 26, which included an attack on Sanaa International Airport, Yemen’s main Red Sea port and energy infrastructure, threatened the ability of Yemenis to access food, electricity and medical treatment abroad.

The organizations added in their report: "The consequences of attacks on civilian facilities will be dire and long-lasting for Yemeni civilians, who are already suffering from exhaustion as a result of a conflict that has been ongoing for a decade."

Although the message did not mention Israel by name, Israel acknowledged the airport raid but said it was justified because of Houthi activity there.

While the US strikes have more narrowly targeted Houthi military sites and equipment, Israeli strikes targeting infrastructure in Houthi-controlled areas have broader implications for the availability and affordability of imported goods, said Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemeni affairs analyst.

Al-Basha added that the recent Israeli strikes destroyed all boats operating in the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Salif, which means that container and bulk ships cannot dock and unload their cargo there.

At a UN Security Council meeting on Monday on the Houthi threat, Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, vowed that the Houthis “will share the same miserable fate as Hamas, Hezbollah and Assad.” Israel has set up military positions in southern Syria following the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in early December.

While the Biden administration has affirmed Israel’s right to respond to Houthi attacks, a senior official issued a mild rebuke Monday at the Security Council, saying Israeli operations should not threaten civilians or civilian infrastructure.

With just weeks left before President-elect Donald Trump begins his second term and takes responsibility for U.S. actions in the Middle East, Biden administration officials have warned that efforts to contain the Houthis’ rogue military campaign must continue.

A second U.S. official said it could require additional military and diplomatic action by countries inside and outside the Middle East. “We’re all going to need to do more,” the official said.

Source: Washington Post - Translation: Yemen Youth Net