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‘Siege for siege’: Yemen slaps maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia
Yemen declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in a tit-for-tat response to the ultraconservative kingdom’s years-long embargo, with the country’s military spokesman stressing that it will come into effect immediately.
In a statement on Monday, Yemeni armed forces spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree announced "a maritime embargo against the criminal Saudi enemy, based on the equation of ‘siege for siege,’” adding that “it will come into force from the moment this statement is issued."
According to the statement, the blockade was imposed in response to Saudi Arabia's continued "unjust and oppressive siege on our dear people for nearly 12 years, plundering our resources and imposing a comprehensive blockade on [the country’s] ports and airports by land, sea, and air" as well as the recent attacks on the Sana’a International Airport.
The spokesman affirmed the Yemeni armed forces’ “complete readiness for all options,” warning that “any foolish act” by Riyadh will be met with a “harsh” response.
Tensions flared earlier this month when Saudi Arabia tried to prevent the return of an Iranian plane carrying a delegation of Yemeni officials, who had traveled to Tehran for the funeral of Iran’s martyred Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. The plane was diverted after the Sana’a airport was bombed and landed safely in the city of Hudaydah. The Saudi-backed government in south claimed responsibility for the attack.
Following the bombing, the Ansarullah resistance movement, who blamed Riyadh for the attack, fired missiles at an airport in the southern Saudi Arabian city of Abha.
Hizam al-Assad, a senior member of Ansarullah’s political bureau, warned that Yemen is prepared to escalate to all-out war if the 11-year siege of Yemen is not lifted.
He said it is unacceptable for Riyadh to continue exporting oil and purchasing weapons to bomb and blockade Yemen while the Yemeni people remain silent.
Al-Assad warned that Yemen’s armed forces are ready to target Saudi oil facilities, refineries, and export ports with missiles and drones if the blockade continues.
Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched the blockade on Yemen as part of a full-scale war on March 26, 2015, with military, political, and logistical support from the United States and other Western states.