US forces hit Houthi anti-ship missiles in Yemen, Officials say

The latest US action came as the Biden administration seeks to balance the need to deter further attacks in the Red Sea by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels against its desire to avert a wider Mideast war. It was a far more limited attack than the extensive airstrikes that the US and UK launched against targets in Yemen last week. President Joe Biden has said that military action sent a “clear message” to the Houthis.

At the White House, John Kirby, spokesman for the National Security Council, acknowledged the large-scale US airstrikes didn’t completely stop the Houthi attacks and said that hadn’t been expected. “We have seen some additional lower-scale retaliatory strikes by the Houthis in the last few days, much smaller than what we had seen before and none of them effective.”

Addressing the US attacks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday, Jake Sullivan, the White House national security advisor, said “we are not looking for regional conflict.” But he said “we reserve the right to take further action” because the Houthis can’t be permitted to “basically hijack” world trade.

Still, since Friday, the US navy has advised vessels to stay away from the southern Red Sea, effectively closing off the Suez Canal for those who follow the guidance.

The move prompted a fresh round of trade disruptions as everything from container ships to oil and gas carriers embark on a detour thousands of miles around the coast of Africa.

The latest company to avoid the Red Sea is London-headquartered oil major Shell Plc, which suspended shipments amid fears of a further escalation in the conflict, according to the Wall Street Journal. Japanese shipping giant Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., with a fleet of about 800 vessels, also halted transits, a spokesperson said Tuesday.

Mideast analysts said that strikes on the Houthis may not be enough alone to deter further attacks, given Iran’s role in backing the group.

“Until Washington can come up with a cohesive policy and strategy that holds Iranian decision-makers responsible for enabling all of these regional chaos agents, we’re going to see more of the same,” said Jonathan Lord, director of the Middle East security program at the Center for a New American Security and a former Pentagon official.