(Wall Street Journal) Benoit Faucon - Iran's paramilitary forces are providing real-time intelligence and weaponry, including drones and missiles, to Yemen's Houthis to target ships in the Red Sea, Western and regional security officials said. Tracking information gathered by a Red Sea surveillance vessel controlled by Iran is given to the Houthis. "The Houthis don't have the radar technology to target the ships," said a Western security official. "They need Iranian assistance. Without it, the missiles would just drop in the water." U.S. officials have said privately they are looking at an offensive military response to the attacks. While the Houthis have said the attacks are in retaliation for Israel's war in Gaza, the ships they have attacked have little or in some cases no links to Israel. In 2021, Israeli mines damaged an Iranian spy ship that had also been stationed in the Red Sea, and it was replaced by the vessel currently helping the Houthis, Western officials said. On Friday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned, "If they continue to provoke us, try to attack Eilat with missiles or by other means, we will know what to do."
2023-12-24 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive