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The Wall Street Journal, citing American officials, said that the US military has prepared options to strike the Yemeni Ansar Allah Houthi group that attacks Israeli ships or those heading to Israel in the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea.
The newspaper quoted the US Central Command as saying that the Houthis had carried out 24 attacks on commercial ships since mid-November.
It also quoted American officials as saying that one of the most important challenges of striking Houthi targets is that many of their weapons systems are mobile.
For his part, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that the Houthis must stop their “destabilizing” attacks, pledging to take measures to defend freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.
British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps also stated that his country will not hesitate to do what is necessary if the Houthis continue to endanger innocent lives and threaten the world economy, as he put it.
On the other hand, the United States informed the UN Security Council on Wednesday that the Houthi attacks in Yemen on commercial ships threaten “navigational rights and freedoms” in the Red Sea and constitute a “global challenge” that requires a “global response.”
Chris Low, the US representative to the United Nations, told the council at its first meeting in 2024 that the United States believes the situation in the Red Sea is “at a turning point.”
It is noteworthy that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had announced on December 18 the formation of a naval task force called “Guardian of prosperity“It includes 10 countries, including one Arab country, Bahrain, with the aim of confronting attacks in the Red Sea.
As part of their stance of solidarity with the people of Gaza against the Israeli aggression, the Houthis announced that they would target with missiles and drones all commercial cargo ships owned or operated by Israeli companies or transporting goods to and from Israel.
