Last Friday, the leader of Yemen’s Houthis threatened to resume naval operations against Israel unless Israel lifted its blockade on aid to Gaza within four days. This marked a potential escalation after Houthi attacks had tapered off in January following a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Since November 2023, the Houthis have carried out over 100 attacks on shipping, claiming they were acting in solidarity with the people of Gaza.
Last month, other senior Houthi officials warned that if ceasefires in Gaza or Lebanon collapsed, missile strikes from Yemen would resume. This aligns with the group’s strategy of linking multiple fronts so that Israel’s regional adversaries act against it simultaneously.
“We will give a deadline of four days,” al-Houthi said, noting, “This deadline is for the Gaza ceasefire mediators to carry out their efforts.”
“If the Israeli enemy after four days continues to prevent humanitarian aid to Gaza and continues to completely close the crossings, we will renew our naval operations against the Israeli enemy.”
The Houthis, who control most of Yemen, also said last month in response to President Trump’s immigration plan that they would take military action if the US and Israel tried to forcibly displace Gaza residents.
Not to worry, as soon as the gates open, more than half of those Gazans will hightail it to the West.
