Leader of the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen Abdulmalik al-Houthi threatened on Thursday to carry out more escalation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, vowing to use “submarine weapons” against western vessels.
In a televised speech, he said the Houthis have carried out attacks on 48 ships since the eruption of the war on Gaza in October.
He also dismissed the impact the western strikes have had on the militias as evidenced they still have capabilities to launch attacks.
He called for the recruitment of new members and urged supporters to hold more rallies and events in support of the escalation.
Houthi claimed that the militias have held 248 military parades, 566 military drills and recruited over 237,000 new members since the beginning of the war.
In addition, he said the militias have fired 183 rockets and drones at Israel since the start of the conflict.
Soon after the eruption of the war, the Houthis began launching attacks against ships passing through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, claiming to be supporting the Palestinian people.
The legitimate Yemeni government has said the Houthis are following Iranian orders and were using the sea escalation to avoid making commitments towards UN-led peace efforts in the war-torn country.
The Houthis on Thursday declared that ships flying the Israeli flag or that are owned or partially owned by Israeli companies or individuals are barred from passing through the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea.
The Houthis' communication, the first to the shipping industry outlining a ban, came in the form of two notices from the Houthis' newly dubbed Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center sent to shipping insurers and firms. The aim is to force sailing companies to collaborate with the Houthis to guarantee the safety of their ships,
They sent shippers and insurers formal notice of what they termed a ban on vessels linked to Israel, the US and Britain from sailing in surrounding seas, seeking to reinforce their military campaign.
Western countries have retaliated against the Houthi attacks by carrying out a number of strikes against the militias, but that has not deterred them from launching more assaults.
The Yemeni government has said the strikes will not impact the Houthis' ability to carry out attacks in the Red Sea. The only solution lies in supporting the government forces to help them restore the functioning of state institutions, liberate the Hodeidah province and its port and force the Houthis to sit down for peace talks.
More attacks
The Houthis launched attacks on Thursday on both Israel and a ship traveling through the Gulf of Aden, setting the vessel ablaze.
The attack saw two missiles fired at a Palau-flagged cargo ship named Islander, the US military's Central Command said. A European naval force in the region described the attack as sparking a fire and wounding one sailor on board the vessel, though the ship is continuing on its way.
Meanwhile, sirens sounded early Thursday morning over the southern Israeli port of Eilat, followed by videos posted online of what appeared to be an interception in the sky overhead.
The Israeli military later said the interception was carried out by its Arrow missile defense system.
Israel did not identify what the fire was, nor where it came from. However, the Arrow system intercepts long-range ballistic missiles with a warhead designed to destroy targets while they are in space.
The system “successfully intercepted a launch which was identified in the area of the Red Sea and was en route to Israel,” the Israeli military said. “The target did not cross into Israeli territory and did not pose a threat to civilians.”
Eilat, on the Red Sea, is a key port city of Israel. On Oct. 31, Houthis first claimed a missile-and-drone barrage targeting the city. The Houthis have claimed other attacks targeting Eilat, which have caused no damage in the city.
