2023-12-31 19:33:59
The military spokesman for Yemen’s Shiite Houthi rebels, Yahya Sarea, announced that at least ten members of their ranks were killed this Sunday when the United States naval coalition responded to an attack by Yemeni insurgents against a ship in the Red Sea.
“While the Naval Forces of the Yemeni (Houthi) Armed Forces were exercising their usual official duties of establishing security and stability and protecting maritime navigation (…) US enemy forces attacked three ships belonging to the Yemeni Naval Forces (Houthi) ), which caused the martyrdom and loss of ten members” of its ranks, the spokesperson said on his official X account.
He asserted that US military movements in the Red Sea to “protect Israeli ships will not prevent Yemen from fulfilling its religious, moral and humanitarian duty in support and victory of the oppressed in Palestine.”
The rebels, backed by Iran, refer to the naval coalition recently created and led by the United States to protect international maritime security in this strategic commercial route, in which multiple shipping companies have suspended their transit due to insurgent attacks.
These deaths occurred when the Houthis attacked the Maersk Hangzhou container ship, flagged by Singapore, which “was heading towards the ports of occupied Palestine, with the appropriate naval missiles,” the spokesman said, assuming responsibility for the attack. “The operation occurred after the ship’s crew refused to respond to warning calls” from the Houthis.
This is the first time since the Houthis declared war on Israel in favor of the people of Gaza more than two months ago that the United States has directly confronted the rebels and has left fatalities in their ranks. The United States Naval Central Command (CENTCOM) announced hours earlier that it responded to a Houthi fire attack in the Red Sea and sank three insurgent boats.
The US claims to act “in self-defense”
The United States Government argued this Sunday that it is acting in “self-defense” in the Red Sea because its interests are at stake in that maritime route, through which a large amount of oil and liquefied gas transits, and emphasized that it does not seek to feed the tension in the Middle East.
This is how John Kirby, one of the White House spokespersons, positioned himself during an interview with ABC. “We are not seeking to expand the conflict in the region. We are certainly not seeking a conflict with the Houthis,” Kirby said.
The spokesperson noted that the United States is not ruling out any options regarding how to respond to the Houthi attacks, but made clear that the main objective is to protect maritime trade and interests in the area of Washington and its allies. “We are going to deploy whatever forces are necessary in the region to protect those interests. We are acting in legitimate self-defense,” he stressed.
Following the start of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, the Houthis have launched several volleys of missiles and drones against southern Israel and also against ships flying the flag of the Jewish State or owned by Israeli companies in the Red Sea and the Bab Strait. to the Mandeb, which connects said sea with the Gulf of Aden.
As a result, several shipping groups have announced that they are temporarily suspending their operations in the Red Sea. Last week, the United States announced a military coalition made up of more than 20 nations under the name ‘Operation Prosperity Guardian’ to counter Houthi attacks in the area and offer protection to ships transiting through the Red Sea.
The armed conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when the Houthi rebels occupied Sanaa and other provinces in the country, and the conflict intensified with the intervention of the Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia, with support from the United States, in March 2015.
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