Yemen’s Islamist Houthi rebel group issued a warning to Israel, the United States, and other Western nations that any hostility against Yemen or the Houthis will come at a great cost.
Ali al-Qahoum, a member of the Iran-backed Houthi Ansarullah group, told a Lebanese media outlet that Yemen and the Houthis, who control much of Yemen, have their defensive options readied to respond to any moves that the United States, Israel, or other country might make in the near future.
“The Houthis will not abandon the Palestinian cause, regardless of any U.S., Israeli, or Western threats,” Mr. al-Qahoum said over the weekend, noting that the group’s operations against Israel will continue.
“Regional Red Sea partners were alerted to the threat,” the U.S. military stated.
Since the start of the conflict between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group two months ago, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis have launched a number of drones and missiles that appear to target Israel, in response to the country’s bombing and invasion of Gaza after Hamas killed more than 1,200 Israelis, most of them civilians, in a surprise attack on Oct. 7. About 240 people were also kidnapped by Hamas, Israeli and U.S. officials have said.
The Houthis, a Shia Islamist group that backs Hamas, said that they'll “continue to prevent all ships heading to Israeli ports until the food and medicine our people need in the Gaza Strip is brought in,” Qatar-backed Al Jazeera TV reported.
“We assure all ships heading to all ports of the world apart from Israeli ports that they will suffer no harm and they must keep their identification device on,” the Houthis stated.
The group also confirmed via Iranian state-run media on Dec. 16 that they fired missiles that struck two Israel-bound container ships near the Yemeni coast on Dec. 15, claiming that the missiles were fired because of “non-compliance with calls and warning messages.”
In response to the escalating conflict, the United States confirmed that it deployed two aircraft carrier groups, more troops, and additional missile defense systems to the Middle East region.
The Houthis, a group previously designated as a terrorist group by the Trump State Department before it was taken off the list by the Biden administration in 2021, have vowed to attack vessels heading to Israeli ports.
Earlier in December, the USS Carney shot down at least three Houthi drones that were heading in the ship’s direction. In November, the USS Thomas Hudner shot down drones that were launched from Yemen, a country that was the site of a civil war that started after longtime former leader Ali Abdullah Saleh stepped down in 2012 and who was later assassinated in 2017.
The U.S. military has also launched strikes targeting eastern Syria and Iraq, such as ammunition storage facilities and weapons depots that were being used by Iranian or Iran-backed forces.
“While the Houthis are pulling the trigger, so to speak, they’re being handed the gun by Iran,” U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan told journalists while in Israel on Dec. 14.
It’s unclear if the group will be returned to the State Department’s designated terrorist organization list.
Updates on Conflict
The Israeli military stated on Dec. 17 that it had discovered a large tunnel shaft in Gaza close to what was once a busy crossing into Israel, raising new questions about how Israeli surveillance missed such conspicuous preparations by Hamas for its deadly Oct. 7 assault.The entryway to the tunnel is just a few hundred yards from the heavily fortified Erez crossing and a nearby Israeli military base. The military stated that that it stretches for more than 2 1/2 miles, links to a sprawling tunnel network across Gaza, and is wide enough for cars to pass through. The army stated that the tunnel facilitated the transit of vehicles, terrorists, and supplies in preparation for the Oct. 7 attack.
Israel’s military, intelligence, and political officials have come under heavy criticism for failing to detect the attack ahead of time. Maj. Nir Dinar, a military spokesperson, said Israeli security services didn’t know about the tunnel before Oct. 7 because Israel’s border defenses only detected tunnels meant to enter Israel.
“As far as I know, this tunnel doesn’t cross from Gaza into Israel and stops within 400 meters from the border, which means the indicators won’t indicate that a tunnel is being built,” he said.
Maj. Dinar noted that the entrance, a circular cement opening leading to a cavernous passageway, was located under a garage, obscuring it from Israeli drones and satellite imaging.
