TruNews: U.S.-led Yemen strikes escalate Middle East conflict

01/18/2024 / By Kevin Hughes

Attacks against Houthi targets in Yemen spearheaded by the U.S. only serve to intensify the conflict in the Middle East.

This was the opinion of “TruNews” hosts Rick Wiles and Dr. Raymond “Doc” Burkhart. The latter cited a news story from Military.com about the retaliatory strikes carried out by the U.S. military and its allies in Yemen. According to the piece, the strikes followed many months of drone and missile attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis that have threatened merchant shipping in the Red Sea.

A senior military official told reporters on Jan. 11 that the U.S. and the United Kingdom directed strikes launched from aircraft, ships and submarines against the Houthi rebels. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who was apparently hospitalized at the time of the strike, said the operation was conducted with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands.

But Wiles pointed out that Austin never said a word during the military action. He added that Americans have no idea if the defense secretary was even aware of what was going on.

Wiles, the founder of “TruNews,” also cited a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) piece warning that the U.S.-led strikes in Yemen had heightened the risk of a wider conflict in the Middle East. Burkhart agreed, adding that it is now moving to the next phase.

Wiles: U.S.-led strikes only strengthened the Yemenis’ resolve

“Yemen’s Houthi rebels responded defiantly to the U.S.-led strike against them, saying that the attacks had failed to cause significant damage and that they remained undeterred from launching more attacks in the region,” the WSJ article said.

“The strikes – and fresh promises of retaliation – threaten to escalate months-long violence in the Middle East into a much broader conflict and turn the Red Sea into a new flashpoint between Washington and the various Iran-backed groups arrayed across the region.”

Mohammed Abdul Salam, spokesman for the Houthi movement, said the offensive “isn’t going to deter us.” He added that attacks in the Red Sea, primarily on shipping lanes, would continue in solidarity with Gaza following Israel’s invasion. (Related: Yemen’s Houthi rebels join war against Israel to protect Palestinians in Gaza.)

According to the Houthis, the U.S.-led forces had conducted 73 strikes that killed five and injured six militants. Damage to their infrastructure was limited, the rebel group added.

Wiles commented that the people of Yemen had responded with defiance with about a million people coming out to stand with the Palestinians and denounce both the U.S. and the United Kingdom. “So, it looks to me all it did was strengthen the reserve of the Yemeni people,” he said. “You get to understand from their viewpoint: They are taking this action of attacking Israel-bound ships in the Red Sea as a way to force Israel to stop the war in Gaza.”

Burkhart pointed out that with the U.S. and U.K. already entering the fray with attacks on Yemen-based targets, the Yemenis are saying that they are now targets as well. Wiles agreed, expressing belief that the Biden administration isn’t naive that this was going to happen.

Wiles said he had never really paid attention to the military strength of Yemen until recently. The nation’s arsenal – which includes ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones – are mostly made with Iranian equipment or components. One such ballistic missile in Yemen’s arsenal is called Typhoon, which has a range of about 1,200 miles.

Meanwhile, Burkhart admitted to initially assuming that Yemen was a poor country with little to no military strength. This is despite the country being in conflict with Saudi Arabia for a decade now. He added that the Houthis have been steadily developing their military capabilities since 2014 when they seized the Yemeni capital Sanaa.

Follow WWIII.news for more news about the ongoing Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

Watch this “TruNews” segment about U.S.-led strikes against several Houthi targets in Yemen.

This video is from the TruNews channel on Brighteon.com.