US and UK attack Houthis after UN resolution calling for an end to attacks in the Red Sea
The US and the UK have launched an attack against Houthi military infrastructure in Yemen under their control.
President Joe Biden said he ordered the strikes “in direct response to the unprecedented Houthi attacks on international shipping vessels in the Red Sea.”
“Today, under my direction, US military forces, together with the United Kingdom and with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands, conducted successful strikes against a number of targets in Yemen used by Houthi rebels to put freedom of navigation in one of the world's most vital waterways is in jeopardy,” the president said in a statement released by the White House.
Biden added that he “will not hesitate to take additional steps to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary.” The NHAA attack also involved Australia, Bahrain and Canada.
US and coalition forces “carried out deliberate strikes on more than 60 targets at 16 Iranian-backed Houthi militant locations, including command and control nodes, ammunition depots, launch systems, production facilities and radar systems defense,” according to a statement from U.S. Air Force Central Commander Lieutenant General Alex Grynkewich. More than 100 precision-guided munitions “of various types” were used. Here is a video about the effects of the attacks
The United Nations Security Council had passed a resolution on Wednesday calling on Yemen's Houthi rebel group to " cease its brazen" attacks in the Red Sea, while the United States and Britain hinted at military strikes.
The warnings came as Iranian-backed militants have for weeks continued a campaign of firing drones and missiles at vessels in this vital trade shipping lane, which they say is revenge against Israel for his military campaign in Gaza.
The United Nations Security Council vote was 11 votes in favour, 0 against and four abstentions, including Russia and China. These countries could not vote against either.
Last Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that "there will be consequences" for the Houthis' continued attacks, during a diplomatic tour in the region to try to cool tensions. Here are the areas where the Houthis operate in Yemen affected by the 'attack
The Middle Eastern “Curse of Thucydides”.
By now the USA and the United Kingdom were practically forced to intervene, after having taken positions many times against attacks on commercial traffic and having also suffered some direct attacks on their own ships in the area. There had been too many cases and the UN resolution was a sort of final authorization. Biden then tries to shift abroad the search for popularity that he lacks on the domestic front, where his immigration policies appear increasingly weak.
At the same time the attack will undoubtedly have the consequence of widening the conflict. Iran, the growing force in the Middle East, feels almost forced by fate to challenge the force that still appears hegemonic in the area, but decadent, exactly as happened between Athens and Sparta at the beginning of the Peloponnesian War. The response may not be direct and could take place through the activation of Hezbollah, both towards Israel and, in a much more insidious way, with attacks towards the West outside the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia has called for moderation and the Kingdom is well aware of the problem, after a long war which, in the end, led to nothing, despite the large financial means used. Over six years of war have not defeated the Houthis, they will hardly be defeated by a missile attack which, at most, can destroy their most visible radars, but will not stop the boats and will hardly make traffic safer in the area.
The attack risks making the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, if not all the Middle Eastern seas, much less safe.
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The article US and UK attack Houthis after UN resolution to end Red Sea attacks comes from Economic Scenarios .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/usa-e-regno-unito-attaccano-gli-houthi-dopo-la-risoluzione-dellonu-per-la-fine-degli-attacchi-nel-mar-rosso/ on Fri, 12 Jan 2024 06:33:50 +0000.