A single night of strikes against Houthi militants won't be enough to deter Red Sea attacks, military expert says
Jan 12, 2024, 13:28 IST
- The US and UK launched retaliatory strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen on Thursday.
- The strikes come after the Iran-backed rebel group conducted dozens of attacks on commercial ships.
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The US will likely have to conduct a series of strikes against Yemen's Houthi rebels in the coming days or weeks if it wants to substantially impact the militant group's capabilities, a military expert told Business Insider.
The US and UK launched retaliatory strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen on Thursday, targeting radar stations, weapons storage facilities, and launch sites linked to the militants, a US defense official confirmed to BI.The large-scale strikes come after the Iran-backed rebel group conducted dozens of attacks against commercial ships sailing through the Red Sea and other key trade routes since November.The Houthis have claimed that the assaults are in response to Israel's attacks on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, although US officials have pushed back on this, and slammed the militants for creating a global problem by attacking international shipping lanes in key waterways.The UK defense ministry said in planning the strikes, "particular care was taken to minimize any risks to civilians, and any such risks were mitigated further by the decision to conduct the strikes during the night.""The detailed results of the strikes are being assessed, but early indications are that the Houthis' ability to threaten merchant shipping has taken a blow," the ministry said in a statement.But Mick Ryan, a retired Major General in the Australian Army and a military strategist, told BI that effectively suppressing the rebel group's missile capabilities will require multiple strikes while also requiring the US and other western countries take steps to ensure a larger regional conflict doesn't break out."At the end of the day, one series of strikes is not going to destroy the Houthis' ability to interfere with shipping, so it's going to probably have to be a series of strikes and probably some negotiation — saying if you don't stop, we're going to keep doing this," Ryan said.However, launching ongoing attacks could risk a larger, drawn out conflict with the Houthis, Ryan said, so the US and its allies will need "limited objectives" and to be clear from the start about what they hope to achieve with these strikes."The Biden administration has a weary eye on escalatory actions," Ryan said.Should the US follow up with additional strikes on the Houthis, it would not be the first time that the Biden administration has taken further action against Iran-backed groups in recent months.Since mid-October, Iran-backed militias have carried out over 125 attacks on US forces in Iraq and Syria, employing a mix of weapons that includes drones, rockets, and missiles. Dozens of American service members have been injured in these assaults, according to the Pentagon.The Biden administration has retaliated against Tehran-backed forces in both countries, and more than once. In Syria, for example, the US has conducted airstrikes on multiple occasions against facilities used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated groups. And in Iraq, the Pentagon has gone after militant groups with gunships and airstrikes.After Thursday's strikes on the Houthis, the US said it would not hesitate to take more kinetic action against the rebels if needed."These targeted strikes are a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation in one of the world's most critical commercial routes," President Joe Biden said in a statement. "I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary."