(Saana) The media of the Yemeni Houthi rebels reported on Saturday new strikes on Yemen the day after American and British bombings against sites of this movement accused of threatening international maritime traffic in the Red Sea.
According to their al-Masirah channel, American strikes targeted at least one site in the capital Sanaa early Saturday.
In the context of the war between Israel and Hamas, tension has risen in the Red Sea in recent weeks with Houthi attacks targeting maritime traffic in solidarity with the Gaza Strip.
Early Friday, American and British strikes targeted military sites held by the Houthis, who control large areas of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, reigniting fears of a regional spillover of the war in Gaza triggered by the attack without precedent carried out by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Israeli soil on October 7.
US President Joe Biden had threatened the Houthis with further strikes on rebel positions if the latter did not stop their firing in the Red Sea.
However, after the British and American strikes on Friday, the Houthis fired “at least one missile” which, however, did not hit any ships, the American army indicated before the strikes on Saturday morning.
Avoid “escalation”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday asked “all parties” to avoid “escalation” after the strikes carried out by the United States and the United Kingdom against the Houthis in Yemen, denounced as “an blatant aggression” by Russia in the Security Council.
“The secretary-general calls on all parties concerned to avoid an escalation of the situation in the interest of peace and stability in the Red Sea and the wider region,” Guterres spokesperson said , Stéphane Dujarric, during a press briefing.
PHOTO YUKI IWAMURA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called on “all parties” to avoid “escalation” following strikes by the United States and the United Kingdom against the Houthis in Yemen.
“We are witnessing a cycle of violence that risks having serious repercussions on political security, the economy, and humanitarian assistance in Yemen and the region,” then warned the under-secretary general responsible for political affairs for Asia before the Security Council, Khaled Khiari.
“These developments in the Red Sea and the risk of exacerbating regional tensions are alarming,” he added, at the start of an emergency meeting of the Security Council, at the request of Russia.
“Vulnerable” ships
At the Security Council, Russia denounced a “blatant aggression” and a “massive strike” on “the territory of Yemen” by the United States and the United Kingdom.
“These states all carried out a massive attack on Yemeni territory. I am not talking about an attack against a group inside the country, but about an attack against the population of the country as a whole,” lamented the Russian representative to the Security Council, Vassili Nebenzia, denouncing the use of “planes”, “warships” and “submarines”.
The United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, warned that no ship was safe from the threat that the Houthi rebels pose to navigation in the Red Sea.
“Whether your ship flies the American flag or that of another nation, whether you voted for this week’s resolution or abstained… all of our ships are vulnerable,” she said, referring to the resolution adopted Wednesday by the Security Council demanding an “immediate” end to Houthi attacks. Russia abstained.
“Without support from Iran, which is violating its obligations, the Houthis would find it difficult to effectively hold and strike commercial ships that use the Red Sea shipping lanes,” added Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
The American and British strikes targeted military sites in Sanaa and in the governorates of Hodeida (west), Taiz (south), Hajjah (northwest) and Saada (north), said a Houthi military spokesperson.
General Douglas Sims of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff spoke on Friday of 30 targeted sites, with a total of more than 150 strikes.