Watan-The Houthi Ansar Allah group in Yemen has revealed its stance on any Israeli escalation through a possible military operation in the city of Rafah.
Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Supreme Political Council (the highest political authority for the Houthi group), said, “Yemeni operations will continue as long as the aggression and blockade on Gaza continue.”
He added, “We say to the Israeli entity, any escalation in Rafah or Gaza, know that our escalation path is ongoing. As long as the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza worsens, and injustice and mass killings of civilians in Gaza continue, operations will expand according to field data.”
Al-Houthi wrote, “It is better for the American and Israeli authorities to end the siege on Gaza, allow food and medicine into Gaza, and accept a humanitarian stance by allowing food and medicine into Gaza and stopping the aggression.”
He further stated, “We affirm that Yemeni operations will continue as long as the aggression and blockade on Gaza persist until food, medicine, humanitarian needs are delivered, and the terrible and atrocious crimes, and the genocide against the people of Gaza, are stopped.”
He indicated that “the continuation of these operations is not in vain but a deliberate and meaningful movement, carrying noble, humanitarian, and fraternal goals to stop the massacres of genocide practiced by the Israeli entity against the people of Gaza.”
الأفضل للأمريكي والإسرائيلي
أن يتوقف الحصار على #غزة،
أن يدخل الغذاء والدواء الى #غزة
أن يقبل بموقفٍ إنساني بكل ما تعنيه الكلمة، بدخول الغذاء والدواء إلى كل قطاع غزة وإيقاف العدوان على غزة
نؤكد ان
عمليات الجمهورية اليمنية مستمرة طالما استمر العدوان والحصار على غزة
حتى إيصال…— محمد علي الحوثي (@Moh_Alhouthi) February 10, 2024
Netanyahu orders reservists mobilization
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the mobilization of reservist soldiers in preparation for a potential military ground operation in the city of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu asked the Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army, Hertzi Halevi, to mobilize reservist soldiers for a military operation in Rafah.
Israeli Channel 13 reported that Netanyahu requested Halevi to re-mobilize the reservist forces that had been discharged in preparation for the potential operation by the Israeli army in Rafah.
The channel cited sources saying that the army has been waiting for about two weeks for political approval to launch the attack on Rafah.
Halevi stated that the army would be capable of handling any mission, but there are political aspects that must be addressed first.
Channel 13 reported clashes between Netanyahu and the Chief of Staff regarding the Rafah operation. It added that Netanyahu intends to hold the security establishment responsible for delaying the military operation in Rafah.
A senior Israeli official told the same channel, “The operation in Rafah is imminent.”
International estimates indicate that there are between 1.2 and 1.4 million Palestinians in Rafah after the Israeli army forced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip to evacuate to the south.