When US and UK warships and aircraft launched a wave of missiles at Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen early Friday in Sanaa, it capped a week of warnings to the group to halt their drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea or face consequences. severe. .
The US has previously held back on retaliatory strikes, reflecting larger US concerns about overturning a shaky ceasefire in Yemen and fueling a wider conflict in the region. But on Tuesday, the Houthis launched their biggest attack of 18 one-way attack drones, anti-ship cruise missiles and anti-ship ballistic missiles on several international commercial ships and warships in the Red Sea.
Although the US and partner military ships and aircraft currently protecting the waterway were able to deflect Tuesday’s attack, the scope and severity of the launch drew international condemnation and left few options but to proceed with international warnings that any further attacks would have far-reaching consequences. respond.
The Houthis are an Iranian-backed terrorist group in Yemen. REUTERS On Tuesday, the Houthis launched 18 one-way attack drones and anti-ship missiles, tempting the US and UK to respond. AP
In response, the US and UK attacked the Houthis’ missile, radar and drone capabilities to degrade the group’s ability to carry out more attacks like Tuesday’s attack.
In response to the attack, which took place in Yemen shortly before Friday 3am local time, rebel groups have already vowed to respond. Later in the day, the Houthis said the attack killed five of their soldiers and wounded six.
Here’s a look at the Houthis and their escalating attacks, and why the US believes it’s more acceptable to bomb some Iran-linked targets than others.
WHO IS HOUTHINI?
The Houthis are a rebel group in Yemen that has been locked in a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. AP
Houthi terrorists swept from their northern stronghold in Yemen and seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, launching a fierce war. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 to try to restore Yemen’s ousted and internationally recognized government to power.
Years of bloody fighting against the Saudi-led coalition ended in a deadlocked proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, causing widespread hunger and misery in Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country.
The war has killed more than 150,000 people, including combatants and civilians, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters, killing tens of thousands more.
A ceasefire that technically ended over a year ago is still being respected. Saudi Arabia and the militants have carried out several prisoner exchanges, and a Houthi delegation was invited to high-level peace talks in Riyadh in September as part of a wider détente the government has reached with Iran. Although they report “positive results,” there is still no lasting peace.
ATTACK ON SHIPS
Since October 7, and especially after the hospital explosion in Gaza on October 17, Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea have increased. AP
The Houthis have sporadically targeted ships in the region from time to time, but attacks have increased since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
The hospital blast marked the start of a fierce militant campaign against US bases in Iraq and Syria, and on many commercial ships transiting the Red Sea.
The attack damaged commercial ships and forced international shipping companies to divert their ships around the Cape of Good Hope.
As of Thursday, the Houthis had launched 27 separate attacks on ships transiting the Southern Red Sea, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a Pentagon news conference.
Houthi military spokesman Brig. General Yahya Saree said the group wanted to “prevent Israeli ships from navigating the Red Sea (and the Gulf of Aden) until the Israeli aggression against our brothers in the Gaza Strip stops.”
A Houthi military spokesman has declared the attack aimed at targeting Israeli ships in the Red Sea as a means of combating Israel’s aggression in Gaza. AP
But some of the targeted ships have direct ties to Israel.
In the recent attack, one of the commercial ships hit – the Unity Explorer – had tenuous Israeli connections. It is owned by a British firm that includes Dan David Ungar, who lives in Israel, as one of its officers.
Israeli media identified Ungar as the son of Israeli shipping billionaire Abraham “Rami” Ungar. But any Israeli connection to the other ships is unclear.
U.S. officials argue that the Houthis are not technically targeting U.S. military ships or forces — a subtlety that might be questioned by the captain of a Navy ship watching the incoming drones.
In response to the attack, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin last month announced Operation Prosperity Guardian, in which the US and more than 20 other countries have created a protective umbrella for commercial ships that do not reroute and decide to transit the Red Sea.
In response to the attack, the US and 20 other countries have created a protective “umbrella” for international shipping. AP
If the operation had not provided commercial ship escorts and intercepted incoming fire, “we have no doubt that ships would have been hit, possibly sunk, including in one case a commercial ship full of jet fuel,” said a senior administration official. reporters late Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the strike. “We had a very close call.”
To date Operation Prosperity Guardian has helped more than 1,500 commercial vessels safely transit the Red Sea.
US CALCULUS
While the US has carried out airstrikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria that have targeted American troops in 130 separate strikes since October 17, as of Thursday the military had yet to retaliate against the Houthi attacks.
In an effort to preserve the tenuous peace, the US has opposed retaliation against the Houthis. AP
The reluctance reflects political sensitivities and stems in large part from the Biden administration’s broader concerns about undoing a shaky ceasefire in Yemen and fueling a broader conflict in the region. The White House wants to maintain the truce and is wary of taking actions that could open another war front.
Iran-backed militias have launched one-way attack drones, rockets or short-range ballistic missiles at bases in Iraq 53 times and in Syria 77 times. Dozens of soldiers have suffered injuries from the attack, in many cases traumatic brain injuries.
In response, the US has responded with several airstrikes in Syria since October 17, targeting weapons depots and other facilities directly linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps and militias. And it hit several sites in Iraq late last month after militia groups first fired short-range ballistic missiles at US troops at Al-Asad air base.
The US has responded to Iranian-backed militia attacks with a series of airstrikes in Iraq and Syria. AP
But until Thursday, attacking the Houthis had been a different calculus.
In one breath, Pentagon officials said Navy ships shot down Houthi drones headed their way because they were considered a “threat.”
But in the next breath the official said the US had assessed that the ships were not targets.
That determination often comes later after an intelligence assessment reviews telemetry and other data.
That, however, is certainly uncomfortable for the sailors on the ship who watch the radar track of the incoming drone and must make a quick decision as to whether it represents a threat to the ship.
At the same time, the US has consistently said it wants to protect free navigation at sea.
But the Houthi actions have prompted the International Maritime Security Organization to issue a warning for ships transiting the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb.
It said ships should choose a route as far as possible from Yemeni waters, travel at night and not stop, as that makes them easier targets.
The Biden administration has talked continuously about the need to avoid escalating the Israel-Hamas war into a wider regional conflict.
So far, attacks on Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria have not widened the conflict, Ryder said.
It is unclear whether a targeted attack on Houthi weapons depots or similar sites – which also have Iranian backing – would cross the line and spark a wider war.
“We will continue to consult with allies and international partners on appropriate ways to protect commercial shipping through the region, while at the same time making sure we do what we need to do to protect our forces,” Ryder said.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
