Iran says Houthis will keep up Red Sea attacks as long as Israel continues Gaza war

Al-Arabia – Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia will persist in targeting “Israeli ships” in the Red Sea as long as Israel continues its war in Gaza, Tehran’s top diplomat said on Monday.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, speaking at a press conference in Tehran alongside his Indian counterpart, said that stopping the “genocide” in Gaza was the only way to put an end to the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

“[The Houthis] assured us that they will not disrupt maritime security, but their position is that they will take action against Israeli ships as long as the war in Gaza continues,” state media quoted Amir-Abdollahian as saying.

The solution is to “stop the war and genocide in Gaza,” he said.

Since November, the Houthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea that they say are either linked to Israel or heading to Israeli ports, justifying their actions as support for Palestinians amid the ongoing war between the Gaza-based Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel, which began on October 7.

The Houthi attacks pose a threat to a crucial transit route responsible for up to 12 percent of global trade. In response, US and British forces targeted scores of Houthi sites across Yemen on Friday.

Amir-Abdollahian warned the US and Britain to halt their attacks against the Houthis and also called on the US and Israel to stop the war in Gaza. “The solution will not be a military one,” he said.

Amir-Abdollahian said that Iran has conveyed messages to the US through Switzerland emphasizing the need to stop the war in Gaza.

He said that Washington cannot support Israel and “participate in the killing of Gazans” while urging others to exercise restraint. “America cannot talk about its desire to stop the war and at the same time take action against Yemen.”