US and UK tell Houthis: We’re ready to strike again

David Cameron and Joe Biden stand firm on Iranian-backed fighters attacking Red Sea shipping

Iranian protesters burn an Israeli and a US flag outside the British embassy in Tehran on Friday night. Picture: AFP

Britain and the US have warned they will attack Houthi targets again if the Iranian-backed militants keep disrupting commercial and military ships in the Red Sea.

The US has delivered a private message to Iran about the militants it backs in Yemen.

Foreign Secretary David Cameron said Britain would “always defend the freedom of navigation” and was ready to “back words with actions”.

It came after a second night of American strikes against the rebels who have been attacking vessels in the Red Sea.

Lord Cameron said Britain had issued “warning after warning”, including to Iran, before taking action.

“We have sent an unambiguous message: what the Houthis are doing is wrong, and we are determined to put a stop to it. We will work with allies. We will always defend the freedom of navigation. And, crucially, we will be prepared to back words with actions,” he wrote in The Sunday Telegraph.

President Joe Biden, speaking to reporters at the White House before he left for Camp David, said “we delivered (the message) privately and we’re confident that we’re well-prepared”.

He had said on Friday he had “already delivered a message to Iran” and added that “they know not to do anything”.

Mr Biden, whose administration removed the Houthis from a State Department list of “foreign terrorist organisations” in 2021, was asked by reporters whether he felt the term “terrorist” described the movement now. “I think they are,” he said.

But the Iran-backed rebels have threatened a “strong and effective response” to the US strikes on a radar site on Friday night, which came a day after dozens of American and British strikes on Houthi facilities in Yemen.

Following the first round of strikes, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the UK and US had acted “in self-defence” and would not hesitate to ensure the safety of commercial shipping.

A RAF Typhoon aircraft takes off from Cyprus on Thursday night to join the US-led coalition to conduct airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. Picture: AFP

British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said in an interview with London’s Daily Telegraph that the world is “running out of patience” with Iran. Lord Cameron said the US-UK operation went “some way to degrade Houthi capabilities built up with Iranian backing”.

The Houthis have claimed “all American-British interests have become legitimate targets for the Yemeni armed forces”, and a group of protesters was seen burning UK flags outside the British embassy in Tehran on Friday.

British embassies have been put on high alert in the Middle East, amid fears of an escalation of the wider conflict in the region. A senior UK source said that in recent weeks they had been moved to a state of high readiness as the prospect of direct military action increased.

“All the embassies in the region are on an appropriately high alert,” the source added. A second source said embassies had been moved to “high readiness” with “low footprints”.

They added that the UK had also stepped up security protocols more widely, with particular focus on British assets across the Middle East. It is understood that in the days leading up to the strikes the US military and political establishment was sensitive to the fact Britain could bear the brunt of any retaliation in Iran.

“They were really conscious of the risk to our people in Iran,” a diplomatic source said. The same concerns were discussed by British ministers in the National Security Council, where intelligence chiefs predicted the Houthis would claim the attacks were tied to Israel’s war with Hamas.

But a senior government source sought to downplay the risk to British diplomats: “We’re confident that we can secure all of our interests.”

The Foreign Office has updated its travel advice for a number of countries in the region – including the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and Oman – to warn that, while military activity is limited to the Red Sea and Yemen, “there is a possibility that travel advice for nearby countries could change at short notice”. It also urges travellers in the region to monitor further updates.

At a pro-Palestinian march in central London attended by an estimated 100,000 people, a number of placards referenced the UK and US military strikes in Yemen. One group of protesters appeared to be chanting in support of Houthi rebels, shouting: “Yemen, Yemen make us proud, turn another ship around.” Lord Cameron rejected suggestions the Houthi disruption was “all about Israel and Gaza”.

Mr Sunak is expected to update MPs on the legal basis and justification of strikes when parliament returns on Monday, with Mr Shapps also likely to provide a more detailed statement on military action.

THE SUNDAY TIMES