The Iran-backed militia group Houthis warned that the US, UK and allies will have to pay a "heavy price" for the attack on Yemen on Thursday night. The rebel group called the attack "a blatant aggression" that will have far-reaching consequences.
In what the US called a "direct response to Houthi attacks against maritime vessels in the Red Sea," the US and UK forces launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets at Houthi targets, including their logistical hubs, air defence systems and weapons storage and launching locations.
Though the Houthis are yet to launch a retaliatory action, the group has vowed to launch more attacks on vessels. Yemen’s Houthis spokesperson Mohammed Abdulsalam posted on X that the group will continue targeting ships heading towards Israel and that there was no justification for the US-Britain attack on Yemen, according to the Reuters news agency.
He described the U.S. and Britain as having committed foolishness with this treacherous aggression. "They were wrong if they thought that they would deter Yemen from supporting Palestine and Gaza," he wrote online. "Houthi targeting will continue to affect Israeli ships or those heading to the ports of occupied Palestine," he wrote.
Houthi deputy foreign minister Hussein Al-Ezzi has warned of a heavy price to be paid by the US and the UK, according to official Houthi media."Our country was subjected to a massive aggressive attack by American and British ships, submarines and warplanes. America and Britain will have to prepare to pay a heavy price and bear all the dire consequences of this blatant aggression," he said.Iran too condemned the strikes. Tehran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani issued a statement saying that it considers the strike a clear violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and a breach of international laws, regulations, and rights.
Meanwhile, Russia has hit out at the United States and Britain for strikes on Yemen while calling for an urgent UN Security Council meeting.
"The U.S. air strikes on Yemen are another example of the Anglo-Saxons' perversion of UN Security Council resolutions," Maria Zakharova, Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman, said. Zakharova said the strikes showed a "complete disregard for international law" and were "escalating the situation in the region".
The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, also backed by Iran and engaged in cross-border fire with Israel, criticised the strikes as showing America as being a "full partner in catastrophes and massacres committed by the Zionist entity in Gaza.
