2024-01-12 00:41:21
The United States and the United Kingdom, with the support of several allies including Canada, carried out an unprecedented strike against rebels in Yemen on Thursday evening.
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“It is too early to say the extent of the damage, but limited strikes will not damage the Houthis enough to make a difference […] on the other hand, if the United States carries out big strikes, we risk getting bogged down in a new war in the Middle East. It’s a very difficult balance to find,” observes Thomas Juneau, professor at the Graduate School of International Public Affairs at the University of Ottawa.
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After numerous attacks by Houthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea in recent weeks, the United States and the United Kingdom report “successful” strikes on Yemen’s capital and other controlled cities in the country by the rebels on Thursday.
Since the start of the war on October 7 between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis, close to Iran, have increased attacks against commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming to target boats linked to the State Hebrew in solidarity with the Palestinians.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY Thomas Juneau
Thomas Juneau, professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa.
“This is the first time the United States has carried out strikes against the Houthis inside Yemen […] to do nothing was a very bad option,” underlines Thomas Juneau, professor and author of the book Yemen at war.
The United States had already deployed warships and set up an international coalition in December to protect maritime traffic in this area where 12% of world trade passes.
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Some ships are now bypassing the area, which has driven up transport costs between Europe and Asia.
Numerous supports
The multi-country offensive is believed to have involved fighter jets and Tomahawk missiles, US media said.
They targeted radars and drone and missile infrastructure in order to reduce their capabilities to attack merchant ships in the Red Sea, US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin said in a statement.
“Our goal remains the de-escalation of tensions and the restoration of stability in the Red Sea,” said a joint statement involving the United States, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Bahrain.
For its part, the British press claims that the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has given his agreement for strikes.
The leader of the Yemen rebels, Abdel Malek al-Houthi, had threatened earlier in the day to respond to any American attack in the Red Sea with even “more important” operations than the particularly heavy one dating from Tuesday.
These are 18 drones and three missiles which were then shot down by combat planes deployed from the American aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhowerthree American destroyers and a British warship, the HMS Diamond.
We still do not know the results of these attacks, but civilian losses are expected.
– With Agence France-Presse
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