After weeks of warnings that went unheeded, retaliation has arrived. Overnight the United States and Great Britain launched 73 raids against Houthi military posts in Yemen who had in turn attacked commercial ships in the Red Sea “linked to Israel” in solidarity, they said, with the Palestinians in Gaza.
This could be the first act of the much feared escalation of the conflict in the Middle East: the Yemeni rebels – who, supported by Iran, control a third of the country – have threatened to respond and announced that they now consider all Anglo interests “legitimate objectives”. -Americans in the world.
The mission, conducted by fighter planes and Tomahawk missiles deployed from Washington and four British RAF Typhoon jets, hit “launch sites for missiles and drones” used against merchant shipping in the Red Sea. According to the Houthi spokesperson, military positions were targeted in the capital Sanaa and in the governorates of Hodeida, Taëz, Hajjah and Saada, with a toll of “five fighters dead and six wounded”.
ANSA Agency The stages of escalation in the Middle East – News – Ansa.it The US and UK raids on Houthi bases in Yemen are the latest development in a war which has seen an escalation of tensions in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and the Red Sea since 7 October, the day of the Hamas attacks in Israel. . (HANDLE) The order to attack came from Joe Biden after yet another Yemeni missile on Thursday towards a transiting ship. The American president then explained that he wanted to respond to the Houthis for having put “in jeopardy the freedom of navigation in one of the most vital waterways in the world” and that he was ready to “order other operations”.
We sent “a strong signal” to the Houthis, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also commented while he was visiting Kiev.
Since last November, former Shiite rebels now in power have launched 27 attacks in the Red Sea, a stretch of sea usually crossed by 12% of global trade: cargoes were therefore forced to divert the route that passes through the Suez Canal towards the south of the African continent, with repercussions on supply times, production and the raising of prices. The latest missile, fired just hours after the raids, fell into the water a few hundred meters from a ship, United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said.
“Our goal remains to ease tensions and restore stability in the Red Sea”the United States, the United Kingdom and eight of their allies: Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and South Korea, said in a joint statement.
Italian government sources they made it known that Rome had been asked to sign the same declaration – which it did not sign – but not to participate in the action. While theEuropean Union is evaluating sending “at least three destroyers or anti-aircraft frigates with multi-mission capabilities” to the Red Sea for at least “one year” with rules of engagement yet to be decided.
ANSA Agency The US warns Italy, ‘but did not ask to participate in raids’ – News – Ansa.it Tajani, ‘it would be unconstitutional’. The e thinks of a new mission (ANSA) Nighttime raids on Yemen condemned by so-called ‘axis of resistance’ which, supported by Iran, brings together anti-Israeli movements such as the Houthis, the Lebanese Hezbollah and Hamas itself, which defined the action as “a provocation against the Palestinian nation” and threatened “consequences”.
Tehran accused the US and the United Kingdom of having conducted “arbitrary action” and made “a strategic mistake”, as did Russia which denounced “destructive escalation”, calling for an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.
“They want a bloodbath in the Red Sea”, Turkish President Tayyip Recep Erdogan also reacted, accusing London and Washington of a “disproportionate use of force”. “Concern” was expressed by Saudi Arabia – which since 2015 has led a coalition of Arab countries against the Houthis in favor of an allied government – and by China which had mediated between the Saudis and Iranians for a ceasefire in Yemen.
An appeal to “reduce instability in the region” also came from Egypt, already engaged in an attempt to revive indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas, and which derives from the Red Sea both the revenue deriving from commercial transit in the Suez Canal and tourist ones.
ANSA Agency The stages of escalation in the Middle East – News – Ansa.it The US and UK raids on Houthi bases in Yemen are the latest development in a war which has seen an escalation of tensions in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and the Red Sea since 7 October, the day of the Hamas attacks in Israel. . (HANDLE)
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