Yemen brushes off US, UK raids
Houthis vow to continue attacks on Israel-bound ships
Yemen’s Ansarallah movement on Friday vowed to continue attacks against Israel-bound ships in the Red Sea despite strikes by US and British forces on the Arab country.
Early on Friday, the US and Britain launched military strikes on Yemen in response to Ansarallah’s attacks on Israeli-bound ships in the Red Sea in recent weeks.
US officials said targets included logistical hubs, air defense systems, and weapons storage locations. US media reported that the strikes involved fighter jets and Tomahawk missiles.
The overnight strikes followed weeks of missile and drone attacks by Yemen on Israel-bound ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which has been under Israel’s deadly bombardment in recent months.
“Yemen was subjected to a blatant US-British aggression to protect Israel and to stop Yemen’s operations in support of Gaza,” Ansarallah’s spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam wrote on X.
“They committed foolishness with this treacherous aggression, and they were wrong if they thought that they would deter Yemen from supporting Palestine and Gaza,” he said, adding that the movement will continue its attacks on Israeli ships and those heading to Israel’s ports.
No justification for
strikes
He said there was no justification for the strikes on Yemen because its actions do not threaten international shipping.
Yahya Saree, spokesperson for the Ansarallah movement, said the US and UK bear full responsibility for “criminal aggression” against the Yemeni people and their attacks will not go unanswered or unpunished.
Saree said in a statement that the US and UK targeted the capital, Sana’a, and the governorates of Hodeida, Taiz, Hajjah, and Saada, killing five individuals and wounding six others.
Condemnations
The strikes on Yemen drew condemnations from many countries in the Middle East, including some US allies.
Iran on Friday lambasted the strikes, saying that the attacks were “arbitrary” and a “violation” of international law.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said in a statement strongly condemned the attacks, saying that the strikes were “an arbitrary action, a clear violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Yemen, and a violation of international laws and regulations”.
Kanaani warned that the attacks “will have no result other than fueling insecurity and instability in the region” as well as “diverting the world’s attention from the crimes” in Gaza, where Israel has launched brutal attacks on the Palestinians since October 7.
Turning Red Sea into
‘bloodbath’
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the US and British strikes were “disproportionate,” alleging the US and Britain wanted to turn the Red Sea into a “bloodbath”.
“First of all, they are not proportional. All of these constitute disproportionate use of force,” Erdogan told journalists after Friday prayers in Istanbul.
“It is as if they aspire to turn the Red Sea into a bloodbath.”
Risk of escalating
conflict
Oman also condemned the attacks, warning of the risk of escalating conflict in the region.
“Oman has warned several times about the risk of the extension of the conflict in the region due to the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian territories,” Oman’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry also expressed “great concern” about the strikes, echoing the view of Yemen’s neighbor Saudi Arabia.
The kingdom voiced its own concern after the UK and US military action, calling for “self-restraint and avoiding escalation”.
Hamas resistance group in Gaza warned of “repercussions” following the attacks.
“We vigorously condemn the flagrant American-British attack on Yemen. We hold them responsible for the repercussions on regional security,” Hamas said on Telegram.
‘Illegitimate’ strikes
The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov condemned the “illegitimate” strikes by the United States and Britain on Yemen.
“From the point of view of international law, they are illegitimate,” he added.
‘United, resolute’
response
However, US President Joseph Biden defended the strikes, saying that they represented a “united and resolute” response to Ansarallah’s attacks on international ships and that the US would “not hesitate to direct further measures” against Yemen.
In a statement released by the White House, Biden said the US and UK strikes were carried out with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands.
In a separate statement, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also confirmed the strikes, saying the UK took “limited, necessary and proportionate action in self-defense” in order to degrade Ansarallah military capabilities and protect global shipping.
The Ansarallah resistance movement has said it is targeting Israeli-linked vessels in support of Palestinians in Gaza. It says its attacks aim to end the pounding Israeli air-and-ground offensive targeting the Gaza Strip.
The Red Sea links the Middle East and Asia to Europe via the Suez Canal, and its narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The strait is only 29 kilometers wide at its narrowest point, limiting traffic to two channels for inbound and outbound shipments, according to the US Energy Information Administration. About 10% of all oil traded at sea passes through it and an estimated $1 trillion in goods pass through the strait annually.