Yemen.. Houthi escalation towards the coasts with the expansion of side consultations
The Houthi militia renewed its threat to target international shipping in the Red Sea and near the western coast of Yemen, indicating that the next battle for its elements will be on the coast, all the way to Hodeidah and Tihama.
The leader of the Houthi militia, Jaber Al-Wahbani, said, "The next battle will include" the Red Sea, Hodeidah, and Tihama.
The Houthis' threats come one day after the Yemeni army spokesman, Brigadier General Abdo Magali, revealed the existence of "Houthi plans", led by foreign experts, to attack Yemeni ports, coasts and oil installations.
Field and local sources in Hodeidah confirmed that the militias had moved naval mines, and installed confrontational missile platforms near the coast of the province, during the past few days, and had sent combat reinforcements to several areas of the western coast fronts.
This comes, while the joint forces on the western coast established naval forces to confront Houthi threats and risks that threaten international navigation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab, as did the Yemeni air defenses and coast guard forces, to protect government interests and secure navigation on the western coast of Yemen.
The Houthi movements near the Yemeni coast coincide with the continuation of side consultations in the Omani capital, Muscat, and others in the Jordanian capital, Amman, with the aim of returning to extend and expand the truce.
Informed sources said that the consultations in Muscat focused on returning to the armistice and extending it, while the consultations in Jordan aimed at resolving the economic crisis related to the payment of salaries and unifying the currency, as well as expanding economic and humanitarian operations to include all regions of Yemen.
According to the sources, the consultations sponsored by the United Nations and the United States, without the support of the international community, aim to open several peace paths, especially in the military, political, security and humanitarian aspects, in addition to returning to the implementation of the terms of the previous armistice.
The multiple side consultations come in light of the exacerbation of the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which warned of a decrease in funding for the necessary aid, noting in a statement that the humanitarian crisis in Yemen is likely to worsen in 2023 in light of the lack of calm. Conflict, lack of economic improvements, the amplified impact of the climate crises, and the effects of the Russo-Ukrainian War.
The statement indicated that "the decrease in funding for humanitarian programs in Yemen, in which "19 million people suffer from food insecurity," is one of the factors, along with other factors, that may exacerbate the suffering of millions of people in the country.
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