Latest Houthi Shift Leaves Israel Squealing!

Right, so the ongoing blockade of aid into Gaza is now approaching the two week mark, but for Israel the four day mark has been reached – reached and ignored and now they’re going to pay a price for that, a price they full well knew they were going to pay because whilst Benjamin Netanyahu’s relationship with the truth might be a loose one, where it comes to Gaza the same cannot be said of the Houthis in Yemen, who have now formally resumed their blockade of Israeli shipping in the Red Sea and surrounding waters. The Houthis, had of course issued a four-day ultimatum to Israel to allow humanitarian aid back into Gaza after they arbitrarily blocked it in order to force an extension of phase one of the ceasefire deal on Hamas, when Hamas wanted phase two negotiations to begin, as both sides had originally agreed, Israel breaking their word and compounding that by committing war crimes. Where the world sits on its hands the Houthis have not, their 4 day ultimatum having expired yesterday, their warning that failure for Israel to comply would result in the resumption of their maritime blockade. With the deadline now passed, the Houthis have made good on their word, reigniting a crisis that has far-reaching implications as much economic as military for Israel, but they’ve invited it, choosing to continue to use starvation as a weapon, what comes next Netanyahu’s government have brought on themselves.
Right so let’s start with the situation in Gaza as it currently stands before we get onto the Houthis because this is after all their justification for renewing their blockade of Middle Eastern waters to Israeli shipping right now, as the Strip has endured almost two weeks of aid being blocked from entering, frustrating so many people around the world no end that Israel are allowed to do it and still no censure comes aside from lip service and criticism which is just water off a ducks back to a war criminal like Benjamin Netanyahu.
A Statement issued by the Union of Municipalities of the Gaza Strip issued in the last few hours at time of writing reads:
‘Gaza is facing a comprehensive humanitarian disaster due to ongoing power outages and the closure of crossings.
In light of the continuous humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, caused by the devastating Israeli aggression that has lasted for 16 months, the Union of Municipalities of the Gaza Strip reiterates the urgent need for a sustainable and sufficient supply of water and electricity. This is particularly critical after the central desalination plant was forced to shut down due to power outages caused by the Israeli occupation. This has put the lives of Palestinians at risk and exacerbated both the health and environmental crises.
We condemn the recent decision by the Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, as well as the ongoing power outages in Gaza since the beginning of the aggression. These actions have deprived the residents of Gaza of their primary energy source, paralyzing essential services, particularly in the sectors of health, water, and sanitation. Desalination plants, sewage treatment facilities, and many other municipal services have ceased operation, increasing the risk of epidemics and the spread of diseases.
We assert that the continuation of these punitive measures against civilians constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. It only serves to worsen the suffering of Gaza’s residents, who are already enduring the worst humanitarian crisis in history.
The denial of entry for construction materials, spare parts, machinery, and alternative energy systems has severely limited the municipalities’ capacity to find effective solutions, deepening the crisis and threatening the collapse of vital services.
The Union of Municipalities of the Gaza Strip urgently calls on the international community, humanitarian organizations, and all relevant parties to intervene immediately. We demand the secure and sustainable supply of electricity, fuel, and water, as well as the entry of essential equipment and materials necessary to keep municipalities operational and to prevent further health and environmental disasters that threaten the lives of more than two million people trapped in Gaza.’
It is against that backdrop that the Houthis in Yemen at least, have said enough is enough.
Their recent ultimatum to Israel was a direct response to that total blockade of humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has now been in place for almost two weeks, a 4 day opportunity to lift the blockade of the Houthis would return to blockading Israeli shipping.
Israel have ignored this, so the Houthis have now resumed their stance against Israeli shipping. How much difference this will actually make at this point is debatable as much of the shipping that was already rerouting itself around Africa to avoid the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, never resumed their original shipping routes on the basis that the shipping companies had little faith that Israel would behave honourably and see through this peace plan, much like the rest of us who are observers of this crisis for some time will have felt as well and they’ve been sadly proven right as much as we have. Well with their time up, the Houthis have issued a statement too:
‘In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
God Almighty said: {And if you return [to sin], We will return [to punishment], and We have made Hell, for the disbelievers, a prison.} God Almighty’s truth.
In support of and victory for the oppressed Palestinian people and their dear Mujahideen, and after the expiry of the specified period of the deadline granted by Sayyid Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi, may God protect him, to the mediators to push and pressure the Israeli enemy to reopen the crossings and bring aid into the Gaza Strip, and in view of the inability of the mediators to achieve this, the Yemeni Armed Forces confirm the following:
First: Resuming the ban on the passage of all Israeli ships in the designated operational area of the Red and Arabian Seas, as well as Bab al-Mandab and the Gulf of Aden.
Second: This ban shall take effect from the time of announcing this statement.
Third: Any Israeli ship attempting to violate this ban will be targeted in the declared area of operations.
Fourth: This ban will continue until the crossings to the Gaza Strip are reopened and aid and food and medicine supplies are allowed to enter.
The Yemeni Armed Forces salute the steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and affirm that, with God's help, they will stand by the valiant Palestinian resistance.’
So Israel need only let the aid in and the Houthis will leave their shipping alone, should any shipping heading Israel’s way choose a Red Sea route, I’ve not head or a Houthi attack just yet, but it is still early days.
The Houthis have a proven track record of targeting Israeli shipping, and their ability to disrupt maritime traffic in these critical waterways is well-documented, all despite them not having a navy of their own. By issuing this ultimatum, the Houthis sought to leverage their military capabilities to pressure Israel into complying with international humanitarian law.
However, Israel’s response to the ultimatum was one of defiance. Despite widespread condemnation from the international community, including the United Nations, the European Union, and numerous human rights organizations, Israel has continued to restrict the flow of aid into Gaza. This is a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement brokered earlier this year, but then Israel are now trying to change it unilaterally, which is also going against the grain of what they themselves had previously agreed to, because their word is worthless. By flouting this agreement, Israel has not only deepened the suffering of the Palestinian people but also undermined efforts to achieve a lasting peace in the region and now invited the wrath of the Houthis once more down on their heads and of course they can escalate from just shipping as we well know as well, they are more than capable of reaching Israel itself with drone and rocket attacks which Israel has struggled to react to, so could we see further escalation as Israel ignores this? I wouldn’t bet against it.
During previous blockades, the Houthis employed a combination of drone strikes, missile attacks, and naval mines to target Israeli ships. These actions have had significant economic and military consequences for Israel, as well as the US and UK, who have had their shipping, including military warships attacked.
The disruption of shipping routes for trade however, has led to increased insurance costs, delays in the delivery of goods, the cost of goods rising and heightened tensions in Israel. As a result of that, the Houthis’ actions have drawn attention to the vulnerability of Israel’s maritime infrastructure, their reliance on sea trade with nations beyond the Middle East for economic prosperity, raising questions about the country’s ability to secure its trade routes in the face of threats to it and certainly nobody managed to stop the Houthis previously through means of aggression, they just carried on each and every time.
The resumption of the blockade also underscores the growing role other nations in the Middle East can have in shaping the dynamics of regional conflicts. The Houthis, despite being a relatively small and resource-constrained group, based in one of the poorest nations in the Middle East, have demonstrated their ability to challenge a powerful state like Israel and succeed. Better fit more nations take am leaf out of their books as Israel’s destabilisation of the Middle East spreads.
Meanwhile it isn’t only Israel the Houthis necessarily have in their sights right now either as they’ve come out against the unelected Syrian government of Al Qaeda leftovers led by Ahmed Al Sharaa for the massacre of ethnic minorities that has been happening there too. Get all the details of that story in this video recommendation here as your suggested next watch. Please do also hit like, share and subscribe to the channel as well if you haven’t already to ensure you don’t miss out on all new daily content as well as supporting the channel at the same time which is enormously appreciated, we’re so close to the 100,000 subscribe mark now it’s crazy, so if you aren’t already subscribing now’s a great time, holding power to account for ordinary working class people and I will hopefully catch you on the next vid. Cheers folks.