Israel urging US to resume strikes on Yemen’s Houthis, form broad coalition — report

Amid intensified attacks by Yemen’s Houthis on maritime traffic, Israel has asked the United States to renew military operations against the rebels, Israeli television reported Thursday. The Iran-backed Houthis — who control large swathes of Yemen, but are not the country’s internationally recognized government — reached a ceasefire agreement with the US in May, and then stopped their attacks on commercial ships for some two months. This week, however, they attacked and sank two vessels, killing at least four people.

Israel has told the US that ongoing Houthi assaults on shipping “can no longer remain solely an Israeli problem,” the Kan public broadcaster reported. Jerusalem called for “more intense combined attacks against Houthi regime targets — not just [Israeli] air force fighter jet strikes, but also a renewal of American attacks and the formation of a coalition including additional countries,” a source familiar with the matter told the outlet.

An unnamed security official told Kan that Israel’s request for US involvement came in response to expanding Houthi aggression, saying: “A broad coalition is needed to convey to the Houthi regime that it is in danger.” The report came on the final day of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington. It did not say at what level the message was communicated.   (Read More)