01/12/2024 10:10 pm (current 01/12/2024 10:20 pm)
John Kirby, White House National Security Council spokesman ©APA/AFP
US President Joe Biden has announced new attacks against Houthi rebels in Yemen if they do not stop attacks on ships in the Red Sea. “We will ensure we respond to the Houthis if they continue this egregious behavior.” The US and Britain bombed militia positions in Yemen on Friday night in response to weeks of attacks by Houthi rebels on merchant ships in the Red Sea.
The militia then threatened to retaliate and later fired an anti-ship missile, according to US sources. “We know they fired at least one missile in retaliation,” said US Lieutenant General Douglas Sims in Washington. The missile did not hit any ships. According to Sims, the US and Britain bombed 30 Houthi positions. Biden, who visited the US state of Pennsylvania on Friday, said there appeared to be no civilian casualties.
The Houthis launched the rocket and drone attacks in the Red Sea after the start of the war between Israel and the Palestinian radical Islamic organization Hamas on October 7. Shiite rebels consider themselves part of the “Axis of Resistance” directed against Israel and supported by Iran, which also includes Hamas.
The Red Sea is an important international trade route. It connects the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal, forming a central trade route through which up to twelve percent of world trade is carried out. Because of the Houthi attacks, many shipping companies have stopped or restricted traffic through the Red Sea and are diverting ships.