“The consequences will be severe for everyone”
The Israeli attack on the port city of Hodeidah, which is under the control of the Yemeni Houthis (Ansar Allah), could have consequences for the entire region. This is what Semyon Bagdasarov, director of the Center for the Study of the Middle East and Central Asia, thinks.
The Israeli airstrike hit fuel depots and port infrastructure. Hours after the airstrike, the Houthis attempted to attack Israel again, launching a missile at the country's southern territories.
According to Yemen's Health Ministry, the Israeli airstrike killed three people and injured more than 85.
— “Ansar Allah” will strike back, that’s for sure. They usually hit critical infrastructure. For example, by ports. The port of Eilat was recently hit. Serious damage has already been done. Eilat is closed. Most likely, it is possible that the Houthis will strike Haifa and Tel Aviv. It depends on the stocks of missiles and drones they have in their warehouses.
— It depends on whether they have certain missiles. Basically, they have missiles that can reach Haifa and Tel Aviv. The drone that flew to Tel Aviv covered more than 2,000 km and hit the US Consulate. This says a lot, including the fact that they have some capabilities. It is still difficult to predict now.
— In general, Israel now has many fronts. The first is the Palestinian front, the Gaza Strip. The operation on the West Bank of the Jordan River has not yet fully developed. Hezbollah is the most important front right now, perhaps because Hezbollah has great strike potential. Israel is now expanding its strike zone in southern Lebanon. However, so far no one has crossed the line there — neither Israel nor Hezbollah. Although Hezbollah can do this and begin launching missile attacks on Haifa and Tel Aviv. They just have such missiles with a serious TNT equivalent. The third front will be the front against Ansar Allah.
— Anything is possible. The technical goal of Ansar Allah, as they stated, is to increase migration from Israel and so that all other Jews would sit in shelters. I don't know how achievable this goal is. The Israeli press reports that during the conflict, since October 2023, about 500 thousand people left Israel, this is 6-7% of the Israeli population. Actually, this is what Ansar Allah is betting on.
Binyamin Netanyahu, against the background of this, just stated that Israel will use all means at its disposal to begin defending the country. It is clear that they will fight back and strike back. If a war starts and develops into large-scale operations, either with Hezbollah or with the Houthis, the consequences will be dire for everyone.