Iran is “directly involved” in the attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea that Yemen’s Houthi terrorists have been carrying out in support of Hamas, the US Navy’s chief Mideast commander said Monday.
Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of the Navy’s 5th Fleet, accused Tehran of doing everything it can to support the Houthis’ attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, which have also targeted US shipping carriers and destroyers.
“What I’ll say is Iran is clearly funding, they’re resourcing, they are supplying, and they’re providing training,” Cooper told The Associated Press. “They’re obviously very directly involved. There’s no secret there.”
Cooper noted that the Houthis have expanded to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, while before, the Iran-backed terror group kept its activities to the Persian Gulf.
The attacks on “Israeli-linked” shipping vessels in the Red Sea have destabilized the key route that carries about 15% of the world’s trade between Asia and Europe.
The Danish shipping giant Maersk diverted one of its carriers Monday away from the area, opting instead for a longer journey around the Cape of Good Hope, the company said in a statement.
Since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war Oct. 7, shipping costs have skyrocketed by more than 600% because of the terror attacks targeting vessels crossing the Red Sea.
“Clearly, the Houthi actions, probably in terms of their attacks on merchant shipping, are the most significant that we’ve seen in two generations,” Cooper said.
“The facts simply are that they’re attacking the international community; thus, the international response I think you’ve seen,” he added, referencing the US-led missile strikes against the Houthis last week.
Cooper’s acknowledgment of Tehran’s role in the Red Sea attacks came after Iranian sources claimed its military leaders, along with Hezbollah officials, were on the ground in Yemen aiding the Houthis.
Iran is accused of shipping out advanced drones with anti-ship cruise missiles, precision-strike ballistic missiles and medium-range missiles, sources said.
The US intercepted one such shipment during a raid Jan. 11 in the Red Sea, which uncovered “ballistic missile and cruise missile components,” officials said, adding that air defense parts were found as well.
Members from both Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and Hezbollah have also been spotted in Yemen training Houthi terrorists and helping them assemble missile parts that were smuggled into the country, according to former Yemeni army sources.
The US has launched at least six airstrikes against Houthi-linked sites in Yemen since last week, with the Biden administration making a U-turn from 2021 and now re-listing the group as a terror organization.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian suggested last week that the attacks in the Red Sea will cease only when the war in Gaza ends.
With Post wires