Israel Ready to Take Fight to Houthis if International Community Won’t: Netanyahu Adviser

Yemen's Houthi fighters' takeover of the Galaxy Leader Cargo in the Red Sea coast off Hudaydah in the Red Sea, Yemen, on Nov. 20, 2023. Houthi Movement via Getty Images

The Israeli military is prepared to act against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels’ efforts to disrupt shipping in the Red Sea if other members of the international community won’t intervene, Israeli national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said on Dec. 9.

Focusing on recent Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Mr. Hanegbi told Israel’s Channel 12 news that Israel might have to act to protect its shipping lanes.

“Israel is giving the world some time to organize in order to prevent this but if there isn’t to be a global arrangement—because it is a global issue—we will act in order to remove this naval siege,” Mr. Hanegbi said, according to a CNN translation of his remarks.

The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, are a Zaydi Shiite movement that has intermittently fought with Yemen’s internationally recognized government since 2004. Their conflict expanded after the Houthis forcefully took over the Yemeni capital of Sanaa in September 2014, igniting an ongoing civil war that has seen Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states intervene on behalf of the Yemeni government.

The United States has supported the Saudi-led coalition throughout the conflict, and the U.S. State Department assesses that Iran supports the Houthi side.

Israel’s Ports Under Fire

Since the outbreak of fighting between Israel and Hamas on Oct. 7, the Houthis have expressed solidarity with Hamas and have launched drone and missile attacks that target Israel’s ports.

On Nov. 20, Houthi fighters executed a helicopter-borne assault on the Bahamas-flagged cargo ship, MV Galaxy Leader, hijacking the ship in the Red Sea and taking its 25 crew members hostage.

The captured civilian vessel is partly owned by an Israeli billionaire, and the Houthis said that “all ships belonging to the Israeli enemy or that deal with it will become legitimate targets.”

This past week, three more cargo ships—MV Unity Explorer, MV Number 9, and MV Sophie II—sustained damage from missiles as they transited the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The missiles were reportedly launched from Houthi-controlled areas of nearby Yemen.

The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Carney responded to the civilian ships’ distress calls and reported downing multiple suspected Houthi drones.

The Carney is one of several U.S. warships that have assisted the Combined Maritime Forces, a multinational coalition of naval forces that provides maritime security between the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, and Persian Gulf.

While Combined Maritime Forces participants have responded to distress calls and downed multiple suspicious drones, coalition members haven’t launched direct retaliatory strikes against the Houthis since the rebel group began attacking merchant ships in recent weeks.

The U.S. coalition continues to assess the situation around the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, although the Houthis’ actions thus far haven’t warranted a more direct U.S. response, Pentagon deputy spokesperson Sabrine Singh said in a Dec. 4 briefing.

Mr. Hanegbi didn’t elaborate during his interview with Channel 12 as to what actions Israel is considering against the Houthis.

Israel–Hezbollah Fight Could Be Next

While Houthi attacks on shipping lanes may draw Israel’s attention south, Hezbollah is posing new risks to Israel’s north.

Mr. Hanegbi told Channel 12 that once Israeli forces defeat Hamas in the Gaza Strip, they may have to turn their attention to the northern border with Lebanon.

Hezbollah and Israeli forces have skirmished along the Israel–Lebanon border in the weeks since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, and the government has evacuated numerous Israeli border communities.

Israeli residents may not be safe to return to their homes in the north if Israel takes actions against Hezbollah similar to those it is taking with Hamas, Mr. Hanegbi said.

While Israel would welcome a diplomatic solution to prevent a conflict with Hezbollah, he expressed doubts that such a solution would emerge.

“We can no longer accept [Hezbollah’s] Radwan force sitting on the border,” Mr. Hanegbi told Channel 12.

Mr. Hanegbi said that more must be done to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, adopted in 2006, which calls for Hezbollah to remain north of the Litani River, which runs about 18 miles north of the Israel-Lebanon border.

He said that with the current state of fighting along the border, Israel can’t be certain that Hezbollah forces won’t breach the border and carry out an attack similar to the Oct. 7 Hamas assault, in which Hamas gunmen breached the Israel–Gaza barrier and proceeded to kill hundreds of people.

Israel has communicated to the United States that it doesn’t seek war in the north, Mr. Hanegbi said, but will “impose a new reality” if it deems Hezbollah to be a continued threat.

From NTD News