US, UK Strike Houthi Targets In Yemen, Biden Calls It 'Defensive Action' Against Attacks In Red Sea

<p>The White House announced that coalition attacks had been conducted in Houthi-controlled regions of Yemen. "U.S. military forces &ndash; together with the United Kingdom and with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands &ndash;successfully conducted strikes against a number of targets in Yemen used by Houthi rebels to endanger freedom of navigation in one of the world's most vital waterways," U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement issued by White House.</p> <p>In a statement, Biden stated that he "will not hesitate" to authorise more military action if necessary.</p> <p>According to a Houthi source and witnesses, air strikes targeted a number of cities in Yemen, where the Huthis hold a large swath of territory, news agency AFP reported.</p> <p>"On 11 January, Royal Air Force aircraft joined coalition forces in striking a number of facilities used by the Houthi rebel faction in Yemen to attack shipping in the southern Red Sea," a statement issued by the UK Government reads.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">"On 11 January, Royal Air Force aircraft joined coalition forces in striking a number of facilities used by the Houthi rebel faction in Yemen to attack shipping in the southern Red Sea," says a statement by the UK Government.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Yemen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Yemen</a> <a href="https://t.co/YQsbsdYSJE">pic.twitter.com/YQsbsdYSJE</a></p> &mdash; Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) <a href="https://twitter.com/PTI_News/status/1745633074237301093?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2024</a></blockquote> <p> <script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" async="" charset="utf-8"></script> </p> <p>According to numerous US news outlets, the attacks used fighter planes and Tomahawk missiles. When asked by AFP, US officials did not immediately corroborate the accusations.</p> <p>Biden described the strikes as a "direct response" to the Huthis' "unprecedented" actions, "including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history."</p> <p>"These attacks have endangered US personnel, civilian mariners, and our partners, jeopardized trade, and threatened freedom of navigation," he stated, emphasising&nbsp;that Washington and its allies "will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation."</p> <p>"I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary," he stated.&nbsp;</p> <p>Since the Gaza conflict started on October 7 with Hamas' unprecedented attack on Israel, the Huthis have carried out an increasing number of strikes against the crucial international water route.</p> <p>In his address, Biden stated that on January 9, they "launched their largest attack to date -&mdash; directly targeting American ships."</p> <p>However, the Western strikes risk exacerbating an already volatile situation in the Middle East, putting the US and Israel against Iran and its regional proxies.</p> <p>The Houthirebels claim to be responding to Israel's shelling of the Gaza Strip by launching a series of drones and missiles against Israel.</p> <p>They have seized a large portion of Yemen since a civil war broke there in 2014, and are members of Iran's so-called "axis of resistance" against Israel.</p> <p>The US and its allies have issued a series of increasingly harsh warnings to the Huthis to cease the maritime assaults, while Washington is wary of further inflaming regional tensions.</p> <p>In December, Washington formed a multinational alliance called Operation Prosperity Guardian to defend marine commerce in the area, through which 12 percent of global trade passes.</p> <p>On January 3, twelve nations led by the United States warned the Huthis of "consequences" unless they immediately ceased attacking commercial vessels.</p> <p>However, late Tuesday, the Huthis conducted what London described as their most significant strike yet, with US and British forces shooting down 18 drones and three missiles.</p> <p>Britain issued a warning, and the UN Security Council called for an urgent end to the strikes on Wednesday.</p> <p>The US military reported the Huthis launched an anti-ship ballistic missile into a maritime passage in the Gulf of Aden early Thursday, which looked to be the final straw for Western partners.</p> <p>The strike was the 27th on international ships in the Red Sea since November 19, according to the US Navy.</p> <p>As the attacks escalate, shipping firms are diverting around South Africa's Cape of Good Hope, raising concerns of a worldwide economic impact.</p> <p>The Huthis claim to solely target vessels associated with Israel or its backers.</p> <p>Following the October 7 assaults on Israel, the US increased its military posture in the region and urged Iran and its allies not to exacerbate the situation.</p> <p>The Biden administration was initially hesitant in its response, as it seeks to protect Yemen's fragile peace, where a decade of civil conflict and a Saudi-led coalition's military operation have resulted in one of the world's greatest humanitarian catastrophes in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country.</p> <div id="cmsMainContent" class="m-content" data-id="1qipHywfHAk" data-mapiurl="https://ift.tt/hWwQ9qT" data-url="//ui.cgtn.com/ui/cgtn_app_v6"> <div class="sourceTextDiv">&nbsp;</div> </div>

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