US Navy Capable of Defending Itself against Houthi Attacks: Col. Dahouk
In response to the US airstrikes against the Houthis in Yemen, the rebel group announced on Sunday it targeted the USS Harry S Truman aircraft carrier and its accompanying warships in the northern Red Sea with 18 ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, reported Euro News.
The Houthi military spokesperson said that the attack was a response to more than 47 US strikes against the areas they control in Yemen, including the capital Sanaa and the province of Saada.
On Saturday, the US President, Donald Trump, ordered a 'decisive and powerful military action' against the Houthis to stop their attacks against US ships, aircraft and drones. Trump said that the US will use 'overwhelming lethal force' to achieve its objectives. He warned the Houthis that if they do not stop their attacks 'hell will rain down upon you like nothing you have never seen before.' Houthi Attack on USS Truman
Commenting on the recent Houthi attack, the Former Senior Military Advisor to US Department of State, Colonel (Ret.) Abbas Dahouk, said that this is not the first time that the Houthis attack US assets.
'This is not the first time that the Houthis fire cruise missiles, antiship missiles or drones against US naval ships, and I think this is perhaps a first retaliation against the recent attacks against them,' he told Al-Jazeera.
Col. Dahouk added that the US has the capabilities to defend itself against these attacks. 'The US navy is capable to defend itself and has done so for the last year. So, I think it is part of the combat operation,' he said. Reasons Behind US Strikes
The US airstrikes against the Houthis come at a time when the group had actually stopped their attacks in the Red Sea since Trump came to power. With regards to this, Col. Dahouk thinks there are two dimensions to the timing of the US strikes.
'One of them is the threat is still there, the threat to the global commercial lanes through the Red Sea is still there, and the Houthis they control and they have the will to decide what to strike,' he noted.
'As the Secretary of State said, the US cannot allow Houthis to decide who is allowed to transit through the Strait and the Red Sea and which cannot. So, the Trump administration wants to end that once and for all,' Col. Dahouk explained. Iran's Last Card
The Former Military Advisor said that the other reason is related to Iran and the nuclear program negotiations. 'And the other thing is also perhaps to deny Iran the last card, like to use President Trump terms, to use the Houthis as a card for future negotiations on the nuclear engagement,' he said.
'So, I think this has two dimensions; one is to put a stop to the Houthis, whether to destroy their military capabilities or also to neutralize their political will to use them against the shipping lanes, and also to deny Iran any reach to Houthis to disrupt any future negotiations,' Col. Dahouk added. US Response to Houthi Retaliation
The Houthis said that any escalation will be met with escalation and threatened to resume attacks on US and Israeli-linked ships in the Red Sea, raising speculations about a full-scale US engagement in Yemen.
In the light of this, Col. Dahouk said: 'We already saw a much more lethal force brought to Yemen than we saw since October 7 last year under the previous administration. So, you see more commitment and a drive not only to go against the drone capabilities or missile capabilities. They are hitting their leadership at the highest level.'
However, Col. Dahouk ruled out the possibility of a full-scale US engagement. 'But I do not think the Trump administration is willing to commit land forces or boots on the ground. Perhaps they might assist the Yemeni government, the Yemeni forces on the ground to provide complementary efforts to the air campaign on the ground against the Houthis. That is a possibility,' he said.
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