US and British Strikes Against the Houthis: Yemeni Presidential Council Urges Action Over Words

With the American and British strikes against the Houthis about a month ago becoming an almost daily routine and the group admitting to the killing of 32 members, the head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi, stressed that what matters is the actions of the Houthis, not their words, with regard to the peace led by the United Nations.

Al-Alimi’s statements during his meeting with UN envoy Hans Grundberg in Aden, on Saturday, as part of a tour during which the envoy leads peace efforts, starting from Tehran, then Riyadh, then Abu Dhabi, arriving at the interim Yemeni capital, in anticipation of his upcoming briefing before the Security Council.

US strikes against the Houthis aim to limit their ability to attack commercial ships (AFP)

Grundberg’s moves come amid fears that the escalation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden by the Houthis and the American and British military reactions will undermine peace efforts and obstruct the completion of a road map leading to a final solution to the Yemeni crisis.

In this context, the US Central Command announced, on Saturday, that its forces carried out, on February 9, between 3:00 am and 9:40 pm (Sanaa time), self-defense strikes against two booby-trapped boats and 4 mobile anti-ship cruise missiles, A mobile land-attack cruise missile was ready to be launched against ships in the Red Sea.

The American statement said that the forces identified the missiles and the two boats in areas controlled by the Houthis in Yemen, and decided that they represented an imminent threat to US Navy ships and commercial ships in the region, adding that these measures will protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer.

The Houthi media confirmed that strikes had occurred on Friday, most of which came in the coastal Hodeidah Governorate, specifically in the areas of Al-Jabbana and Al-Kathib, then in the Taif region, where the Al-Durayhimi District is located, south of the city of Hodeidah, in addition to subsequent strikes received by the group’s sites on the same day, targeting Saada Governorate, where its main stronghold is. It affected the Qatainat area in Baqim District.

On Saturday, the group held a funeral in Sanaa for 17 members, including 7 with the rank of colonel, who it said were killed in the American-British strikes, adding to 5 others whose killing the group had previously admitted, in addition to 10 who were killed when they tried on December 31 of last year. Pirate a ship in the southern Red Sea, where American forces destroyed their three boats.

The leader of the Houthi group downplayed the impact of Western strikes and threatened more naval attacks (Reuters)

In the latest sermon by Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Iranian-backed group, he downplayed the impact of the strikes, of which Britain participated on three occasions, and said that they were merely “for fun and to save face,” and threatened more attacks against ships under the banner of supporting the Palestinians in Gaza.

Since January 12, Washington, with London participating on three occasions, launched a series of strikes amounting to about 17 strikes, which included dozens of raids on Yemeni territory controlled by the Houthis, in addition to dozens of operations to confront attacks with missiles and drones.

With the exception of about 5 cargo ships being damaged as a result of the Houthi attacks, no casualties were reported among the crews, amid Washington and London’s confirmation of the continuation of operations to protect the ships, and the readiness of European forces to participate in securing the ships without participating in carrying out direct strikes against the group.

US Ambassador Fagin: “The classification of the Houthis as a terrorist group will come into effect at the end of next week if the militia does not stop its attacks on ships.” pic.twitter.com/s5RVHkxZqc

— US Embassy to Yemen US Embassy to Yemen (@USEmbassyYemen) February 9, 2024

The United States specifically classified the Houthi group on its terrorist lists, and the US ambassador to Yemen, Stephen Fagin, warned in a tweet on the “X” platform that the classification “will enter into force at the end of next week, if the militia does not stop its attacks on ships.”

Because of the Houthis’ guerrilla style, Yemeni observers rule out that Western strikes at this pace will weaken the group’s capabilities or reduce its danger to ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The group accused of receiving Iranian support and weapons has carried out about 42 attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November 19 against cargo ships and American naval forces, as it claims that it seeks to prevent the navigation of ships to and from Israel, before adding American and British ships to its goals.

Grundberg in Aden

The Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden was not what the UN envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, wanted, as he received the approval of the Yemeni government and the Houthis on commitments to draw up a map for a peace agreement in the country, which has been exhausted by fighting since late 2014, when the Houthis stormed Sanaa.

Finally, the envoy continues his efforts, calling for restraint, despite the relative escalation internally at the contact lines between government forces and militants of the Houthi group, hoping to crystallize the road map based on the understandings sought by Saudi Arabia and the Sultanate of Oman.

Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, receives the UN envoy in Aden on Saturday (Saba)

The Yemeni official media reported that the head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, received in Aden, along with the new Prime Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, on Saturday, the United Nations Special Envoy Hans Grundberg.

Saba news agency reported that Al-Alimi was briefed by the UN envoy on the results of his contacts and his recent tour in the region, and the latest developments in his coordinated efforts to resume a comprehensive Yemeni political process under the auspices of the United Nations.

The meeting touched – according to the agency – on developments in the Yemeni situation, and the international pressure required “to push the Houthi militias towards seriously engaging with peace efforts, ending the suffering of the Yemeni people, and restoring their legitimate institutions.”

Al-Alimi reaffirmed the support of the Council he leads and the government for the efforts of the United Nations and its special envoy, and the keenness to provide all facilities to fulfill his tasks and responsibilities covered by international legitimacy resolutions, in particular Resolution 2216.

The President of the Yemeni Governing Council stressed the importance of “the UN mediator focusing on the actions and not the words of the Houthi militias and their Iranian supporters to verify their seriousness in dealing with peace efforts, including ending their siege of the city of Taiz, and the restrictions imposed on the movement of money, goods and employee salaries, and stopping their military escalation and attacks.” terrorist attacks on civilian facilities and objects, and their gross violations of human rights,” according to what the official media said.

The Houthi attacks led to the cessation of oil exports from the liberated Yemeni regions since October 2022, which had economic consequences for the legitimate government. The group also imposes a parallel banking system, in addition to its control over communications and the ports of Hodeidah, in addition to controlling civilian air navigation. .

2024-02-12 11:05:54
#Peace #Treaty #regulate #military #activities #Sinai #Rafah