Iran threatens 'decisive' response following US strikes on Houthis

Iran threatens 'decisive' response following US strikes on Houthis

Elad Benari

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a stark warning on Sunday, vowing a "decisive" retaliation against any attack, following US President Donald Trump's authorization of strikes targeting Yemen’s Houthi rebels, AFP reported. Trump also cautioned Tehran to cease its support for the group.

In a televised address, IRGC commander Hossein Salami dismissed Trump's threats, stating, "Iran will not wage war, but if anyone threatens, it will give appropriate, decisive and conclusive responses."

Salami also defended the Houthis, describing them as "the representative of the Yemenis" and emphasizing that the group makes its "strategic and operational decisions" independently.

In announcing the strikes on the Houthis on Saturday, Trump demanded that "Iran's support for the rebels must end immediately."

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi criticized Trump’s threats, asserting that Washington had "no authority" over Tehran’s foreign policy.

"The United States Government has no authority, or business, dictating Iranian foreign policy," Araqchi wrote on X, while calling for an end to the "killing of Yemeni people."

The Houthi rebels have upped their attacks in the region since October of 2023, having launched drones and ballistic missiles towards cities in Israel while also targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea region, in support for Gazans.

The Houthis halted their launches towards Israel with the start of the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas.

After the first phase of the deal ended, the rebels announced that they would resume their attacks on vessels.

The US State Department last week announced it had officially implemented the designation of the Houthi movement as a "foreign terrorist organization" (FTO), following Trump's executive order on the issue, which was signed in January.

It has long been believed that Iran is planning to use the Houthis to take over Yemen and seize the key strategic port of Aden, which controls the entrance to the Red Sea and ultimately to the Israeli resort city of Eilat.

Iran has denied accusations that it provided the Houthi rebels with ballistic capabilities, even after the US Navy seized an Iranian weapons shipment bound for Houthi rebels in Yemen.