US and UK launch airstrikes on several cities controlled by Yemen's Houthi rebels

The war in the Middle East has definitely expanded. The United States and the United Kingdom launched attacks this Thursday against targets in Yemen linked to the Houthi militias, in the first major act of retaliation since these Iranian-backed groups began harassing merchant ships in the Red Sea in October.

In a statement, President Joe Biden indicated that the attacks “come in direct response to unprecedented attacks by the Houthis against international merchant ships in the Red Sea, including the first-ever use of anti-ship ballistic missiles.” “These attacks have endangered US military personnel, civilian mariners and our partners, threatened commerce and freedom of navigation,” he adds.

According to the tenant of the White House, ships from more than 50 countries have been affected in the 27 attacks carried out so far by Yemeni rebel groups. Crews from more than twenty countries “have been threatened or taken hostage in acts of piracy.” And more than two thousand ships have been forced to deviate thousands of kilometers on other routes to avoid passage through the Red Sea.

“These millimeter attacks represent a clear message that neither the United States nor our partners will tolerate attacks against our forces nor will we allow hostile agents to endanger freedom of navigation on one of the most fundamental routes in the world,” emphasizes Biden, who warns that This Thursday's blow could be repeated: “I will not hesitate to order more measures to protect our people and the free flow of commerce if necessary.”

Missile attacks by Western forces have hit targets even in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, according to sources in that country. They have also struck Hodeida, on the west coast of the Arab country, and about a dozen locations, some in the vicinity of towns with such cultural and historical importance as the city of Taiz, in the center of the country. US military commanders who have spoken on condition of anonymity have indicated that this was to send a deterrent message, not a symbolic message.

A group of countries led by the United States and that militarily protects naval traffic in those waters had warned these groups at the beginning of last week of serious retaliation if they continued the attacks, which have reached at least two dozen incidents in the last three months. Almost immediately, the militia resumed launching missiles and drones.

The British-American attacks also come after the UN Security Council on Wednesday approved a resolution, 2722, ordering the Houthis to immediately cease their harassment in the Red Sea. These militias maintain that they carry out the attacks to get Israel to end the offensive it is carrying out in Gaza and that has already killed at least 23,000 Palestinians, in retaliation for the attacks by the radical Palestinian militia Hamas in its territory on October 7, in which at least 1,200 Israelis died.

This Tuesday, British and American ships intercepted one of the largest waves of missile and drone launches carried out so far by the Yemeni rebel group. For the Pentagon and the White House, which had assured that after the warning at the beginning of the year there would be no second chance, it was the last straw. The president of the United States, Joe Biden, approved this Thursday's operation.

Drone attacks by the Houthi militias have forced shipping companies in some cases to look for alternative routes to the Red Sea, which represents 15% of global maritime traffic.

The strikes by the British and American planes represent the entry into a new phase of the conflict in the Middle East and its expansion to other points outside Gaza. Precisely the objective that the United States has tried so hard to avoid in the last three months, through intense diplomacy and an increase in its military presence in the area. The Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, concluded his last tour of the region this Thursday, his fourth, in which he tried precisely to calm things down and prevent the crisis from expanding.

American and British military planes took off from bases in the region heading toward Yemen to strike targets. The aircraft carrier Dwight Eisenhower, also deployed in the area, joined in the missile launch. A US submarine fired Tomahawk sea-to-surface missiles. The projectiles hit drone and missile launch areas, as well as arsenals and radars in different parts of Yemen.

Forces from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands also planned to participate to provide intelligence and logistical support, among other capabilities, according to US military commanders.

Follow all the international information on Facebook and xor in our weekly newsletter.