Analysis: Can the US, Israel stop Yemen’s Houthis from seizing more ships?
Al JazeeraNov 20, 2023
US Central Command said Sunday that the USS Carney, a Navy destroyer, reportedly successfully intercepted and shot down three drones fired by Iran-backed Houthi rebels on three commercial vessels in the Red Sea. US Central Command stated there were a total of four attacks.
While one missile fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen exploded near the UK-owned cargo ship Unity Explorer, another hit it, resulting in minor damage. Two other ships — the Panamanian-flagged bulk carriers Number 9 and Sophie II — also reported being struck by missiles.
The Middle East is on the edge and the actions of the US and its allies are not helping. While provocation of any kind must be avoided, the responses must also be tempered. The region can't afford a widening of conflict beyond Gaza. De-escalation is the best way to bring down tempers, and Iran is the key here. Nudging the country through diplomacy towards defusing the situation is the only way out — not a military tit-for-tat.
The Houthis, Iran's proxies, are a threat to the entire global economy as the region they exert their military influence on is crucial to international commerce. Sunday's attacks threatened ships with connections to 14 nations. The US, its allies, and the global community as a whole must robustly defend this aggression similarly to how it successfully addressed piracy in East African waters.
There's an 8% chance that the US and Iran will be primary actors on opposite sides of a war before 2025, according to the Metaculus prediction community.