Houthis vow retaliation after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah

The Iranian-backed Houthis say they will increase attacks on Israel in the wake of the drone attack on July 19 and Israel’s retaliation on July 20 in which the IDF struck the port of Hodeidah.

Hizam al-Assad, a member of the Houthi’s political bureau said that the Houthis would respond to the Israeli airstrikes.

“The Zionist enemy has opened the gates of hell for itself by targeting Yemen’s Hodeidah port, he said, adding that the ports, military, and security centers deep in the occupied Palestinian territories will come under the fire of the Yemeni army,” a report at Iran’s IRNA said.

This is part of a growing number of statements by Iran and its other proxies in the region about supporting the Houthis. Iran is lining up support and circling the wagons. “Iraqi resistance group Kata’ib Hezbollah says it is well-prepared to fight against the Zionist regime on all fronts,” Iranian state media also said recently.

This includes Kataib Hezbollah, one of the key Iranian proxies in Iraq. This same group was behind the January attack that killed three Americans in Jordan, as well as recent threats to Saudi Arabia and the US. “The group expressed its all-out support to stand united in all fronts, especially in the resistance front of Yemen,” Kataib Hezbollah said.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani also called the Houthis on July 22 and expressed support for them. According to IRNA “in a phone call with Mohammad Abdul Salam condemned the recent Israeli attacks on the civilian facilities of Yemen's Hudaydah port. The two officials exchanged opinions on the crimes of the Tel Aviv regime and stressed the need to have discussions and consultations on the latest developments in the region.”

Houthis threaten retaliation and expanded attacks

Bagheri Kani referenced an operation called True Promise which took place on April 13-14 in which Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel. The Iranian diplomat said that It “has brought in strategic failure for the Zionists over the past nine months.”

The Houthis are now pushing a narrative to pro-Iran media. This is message discipline by the Houthis. “A high-ranking member of the Yemeni resistance movement Ansarullah’s political bureau has said that the Zionist regime will receive a painful response for the recent attack on Yemen’s port of Hodeidah,” Iranian state media noted.

“He noted that the Yemeni operations will intensify and that Yemenis will inflict unique blows upon the occupied territories and the interests of the Zionist regime.” The Houthis claim now they are entering a new “fifth” phase of operations.

IRNA claimed that the Houthis “have entered the fifth phase of their operations, and the more civilians are targeted, the more Yemenis will target sensitive and strategic centers of the regime, the official warned.”

In addition, the Houthis threatened Arab countries. It used similar language as Kataib Hezbollah’s recent threats against Saudi Arabia, claiming that some Arab states had “crossed the red lines by supporting the Zionist enemy and opening land corridors to replace the Red Sea and opening their airspace and calling Hamas a terrorist.” The Houthis now appear to threaten Saudi Arabia and the Gulf or other countries with a response.

Ali al-Qahoum, a top official of the Houthis also said that a response to the Hodeidah strikes is coming soon, in the next days which he said will be “full of surprises.” Russian media quoted Qahou, showing how the Houthis are also seeking for their message to reach other anti-western countries. The Houthis reportedly recently struck a tanker carrying Russian oil with an unmanned drone boat.

The Houthis now say that the “scope of the targets in occupied Palestine will be wide and comprehensive, adding that Yemen has the upper hand and the ability to change the balance of power and achieve victory.” Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the Houthi leader, also said the group is not deterred.