US Asked Sanaa Not to Escalate, Yemen Refused: Analyst

By Al Mayadeen English

21 Jul 2024 17:49

The Israeli occupation attacking Yemen stoked further regional tensions and prompted the US to ask Sanaa not to retaliate.

Recent diplomatic communications between Muscat and Sanaa, relayed by the US, have highlighted that Yemen will not waver and will be responding to the Israeli act of aggression, Brigadier General Abdul Ghani al-Zubaidi said. 

Al-Zubaidi disclosed that Muscat informed Sanaa, citing American sources, that the strike on Hodeidah had been concluded. The essence of the message was that the event was a tit-for-tat in response to Yemen's drone strike on Tel Aviv. 

Further communications from Muscat, again relayed from the US, included a request for Sanaa to avoid escalating the situation. However, Al-Zubaidi emphasized that tolerance is not an option for Yemen.

"The call for restraint is acknowledged, but Yemen's stance on leniency remains firm," he stated, underscoring the country’s resolute posture in the face of external pressures.

In an interview with Al Mayadeen, Brigadier General Al-Zubaidi mentioned the potential introduction of new weaponry into the battlefield. 

"We possess the strategic threads of the battle," he said, hinting at Yemen's preparedness to leverage new military capabilities if needed.

Israeli war jets launched a series of airstrikes on Saturday targeting Yemen's province of Hodeidah on the Red Sea coast.

The aggression targeted an oil refinery, leading to a massive fire that can be seen kilometers away.

The Yemeni Ministry of Health reported martyrs and wounded as a result of the aggression, confirming that civilians suffered severe burns due to the fires. 

On Friday, the Yemeni Armed Forces announced a successful drone strike targeting a significant site in Tel Aviv, occupied Palestine, in continuation of their operations in support of Gaza.

The operation in question was conducted by the newly developed Yafa drone, Yemeni Armed Forces spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree declared early Friday. The drone is named after the Palestinian city occupied by "Israel" as part of greater Tel Aviv.

At least one Israeli was killed and eight others were injured in the strike that targeted a building almost 100 meters away from the US consulate, Israeli media outlets reported.

The Yemeni Armed Forces reiterate that occupied Yafa (Tel Aviv) is an unsafe zone and that a response to the Israeli aggression on civilian facilities in the Yemeni coastal province of Hodeidah is undoubtedly coming, Saree said on Saturday.