Yemen's Houthis warn they will hit back at US if attacked

AFP , Wednesday 20 Dec 2023

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who have launched missiles and drones at cargo ships in the Red Sea, warned Wednesday that they would strike back if attacked by US forces.

Houthi Leader
The Houthis say their strikes on passing container ships are in support of Palestinians in Gaza as Israel presses forward with its war on the Israeli-besieged strip. Photo courtesy of Al Mayadeen English

 

"We [Houthis] are not the kind of people who are afraid of war," said rebel leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi.

"If the Americans intend to escalate further, get more involved and commit foolishness by targeting our country... we will target them," he said in a speech broadcast on the rebel's Al-Masirah television.

"We will make American battleships, American interests and American navigation a target for our missiles and drones," al-Houthi asserted.

His comments came after the United States said it was building up a multinational naval task force to protect vessels transitting the Red Sea from Houthi attacks carried out in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

The US aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower has entered the Gulf of Aden, according to a US Navy spokesperson.

The rebels have launched more than 100 drone and missile attacks, targeting 10 merchant vessels, according to the Pentagon, from the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country.

The Houthis say their strikes on passing container ships are in support of Palestinians in Gaza as Israel presses forward with its war on the Israeli-besieged strip.

In his latest speech, the Houthi leader condemned the US's unwavering support for Israel saying: “America contributes and participates in what is happening in Gaza and has transferred all its bases in the region to support Israel, in addition to providing political support and objecting to any UN decision for a ceasefire.”

He also warned states against joining the new taskforce, saying it would threaten their interests in the Red Sea.

"When you involve yourselves with the Americans in the service of Israel, you are implicating your people in every sense of the word," he said.

Earlier on Tuesday, a top Houthi official warned that any nation that acts against the Yemeni rebels will have its ships targeted.

"Any country that moves against us will have its ships targeted in the Red Sea," Mohammed Ali al-Houthi said in a televised interview with Iran's Al-Alam television.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online

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