US and UK take the fight to Yemen as Tehran imperils global trade

(Originally publisehd Jan. 12 in “What in the World“) The U.S., the U.K. and their allies launched military strikes against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen to prevent further attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

The attacks, which involved aircraft, ships and submarines, targeted more than a dozen sites in Yemen. The Houthis confirmed attacks in the capital, Sanaa, as well as in the cities of Saada and Dhamar.

The allied attacks followed the launch Tuesday by the Houthis of the largest of at least 26 drone and missile attacks they’ve made against ships traversing the Suez Canal since Nov. 19. The navies of the United States and the United Kingdom shot down 21 drones and missiles Tuesday using carrier-based fighter jets and on-board anti-missile systems. The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower carrier group shifted last month from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea, where it has been joined by four British destroyers as part of a U.S.-led escort service dubbed “Operation Prosperity Guardian.” As in Ukraine, however, the West is being forced to pit million-dollar missiles against cheap enemy drones.

The same day, Iran seized an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, along with its cargo of Turkey-bound Iraqi crude. The same tanker was in 2022 diverted to Texas and its cargo of Iranian crude seized by U.S. authorities as part of economic sanctions against Tehran. Though now renamed, Tehran appears to see the seizure of the Greek-owned tanker as just retribution for Washington’s seizure of its earlier cargo. Between them, though, Iran and the Houthis have demonstrated how easily they can disrupt global trade and strangle the supply of oil to Europe and East Asia.

U.S. officials, meanwhile, are warning that Hezbollah could be planning to shift from firing rockets at Israel from southern Israel to launching terrorist attacks against Americans in the Middle East.

Given the growing list of U.S. enemies, the Pentagon on Thursday launched a new initiative aimed at beefing up U.S. defense production, stockpiling crucial resources like rare earth metals, reducing supply bottlenecks and encouraging new investment in military technology.