Yemen's Houthis threaten '4th round of escalation' if Israeli war on Gaza continues

The Yemeni group Houthi said Thursday that it is preparing a "fourth round of escalation" if the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip continues.

"If Israel and the U.S. persist in aggression against the Palestinian people, there will be a fourth round of escalation against this occupying enemy," group leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi said in a recorded speech reported by the Houthi-run Saba News Agency.

The first round of the Houthi military escalation began last October by targeting sites in southern Israel with missiles and drones, before the group moved to the second phase in November last year, targeting ships belonging to or linked to Israel.

The third round involved targeting American and British ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea early this year.

The Houthi leader noted that if a cease-fire is reached in Gaza, this does not mean that the battle has ended.

He added: "When we reach the end of this round, the conflict with the Israeli enemy will continue."

The Houthis have been targeting ships that are Israeli-owned, flagged, operated or heading to Israeli ports in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden with missiles and drones in solidarity with the Gaza Strip, which has been under a devastating Israeli offensive since Oct. 7, 2023.

With the U.S. and UK launching retaliatory airstrikes against Houthi sites inside Yemen, the Houthis declared that they consider all American and British ships military targets.