Houthi leader declares 'Sanaa will not remain neutral,' threatening to target US
He emphasized that any further military escalation would be met with an "equivalent response," calling for increased coordination among members of the "axis of resistance"
The Houthi in Yemen have signaled a high state of combat readiness as they monitor a significant US. Navy redeployment in the Red Sea, according to a Wednesday report from the pro-Iranian daily Al-Akhbar.
The movement is bracing for a potential escalation with the United States and Israel, viewing the recent arrival of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford and two accompanying destroyers as a precursor to an imminent naval confrontation.
In a speech Tuesday evening, Houthi leader Abdel Malek al-Houthi warned that the Ansarallah organization would not remain passive in the face of what he termed a direct American-Israeli threat. "Sanaa will not remain neutral," he declared, framing the current maritime tensions as part of a wider conflict targeting the "Islamic nation" and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
He emphasized that any further military escalation would be met with an "equivalent response," calling for increased coordination among members of the "axis of resistance."
Sources close to the movement described the U.S. naval presence as a provocative "show of force" and indicated that missile strikes against American warships are a distinct possibility if the standoff intensifies.