Since Israel launched its devastating assault and invasion of Gaza after the 7 October attacks by Hamas militants, the world has been anxious about the war spreading into a wider conflict that consumes the Middle East. In recent weeks, the threat of an expanding conflict has centred on an unlikely place: the poorest country in the region, Yemen, which has suffered years of civil war.

In late October, the Houthi militia in Yemen began firing missiles and drones towards Israel and then moved to seize commercial ships sailing in the Red Sea. The Houthis claimed they would prevent Israeli ships – or those registered to Israeli owners – from passing through the channel until Israel stopped its attack on Gaza. In recent weeks, the Houthis escalated their attacks on cargo ships using missiles, drones and small boats. The attacks, which crippled traffic through a vital trade route that links Asia to Europe and the US, prompted Joe Biden’s administration to create an international naval operation last month to protect commercial ships in the Red Sea.

On 31 December, US and Houthi forces clashed directly for the first time when US helicopters responded to a distress call from a Singapore-flagged container ship that was being attacked by Houthi boats. In the ensuing firefight, the US sank three of the four Houthi boats, killing 10 fighters. The incident prompted new threats from US and UK officials, who said they were considering airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen to prevent further........

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