US Plans More Strikes in Middle East Against Iran-backed Militias

The White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan announced on February 4 the United States' intention to conduct additional strikes against Iran-backed groups in the Middle East. This follows recent attacks on Tehran-aligned factions in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen over the past two days.

The U.S. and Britain carried out attacks on 36 Houthi targets in Yemen, a day after the U.S. military targeted Tehran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria in response to a lethal attack on U.S. troops in Jordan. Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Adviser, emphasized the plan for additional strikes and actions to send a clear message that the U.S. will respond when its forces are attacked or its people are killed.

These strikes are the latest developments in a conflict that escalated since October 7 when the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas initiated hostilities by storming Israel from the Gaza Strip. Various Tehran-backed groups supporting the Palestinians have engaged in the conflict, with Hezbollah firing at Israeli targets, Iraqi militias targeting U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria, and the Houthis firing on shipping in the Red Sea and at Israel.

Despite backing these groups, Iran has avoided direct involvement in the conflict. The Pentagon has expressed a reluctance to war with Iran, and Sullivan did not provide details on whether the U.S. might target sites inside Iran.

The recent strikes in Yemen targeted buried weapons storage facilities, missile systems, launchers, and other capabilities used by the Houthis to attack Red Sea shipping, according to the Pentagon, which specified the targeting of 13 locations.

The Yemen strikes are concurrent with the unfolding U.S. campaign of retaliation for the killing of three American soldiers in a drone strike by Iran-backed militants on an outpost in Jordan. The first wave of retaliation, carried out on Friday, targeted over 85 locations in Iraq and Syria linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated militias, reportedly resulting in nearly 40 casualties.

Iran's foreign ministry denounced the latest attacks on Yemen as a "flagrant violation of international law by the United States and Britain," warning that the continuation of such attacks poses a "worrying threat to international peace and security." While the Houthis claim their attacks are in solidarity with Palestinians, the U.S. and its allies characterize them as indiscriminate and a threat to global trade. Major shipping lines have largely abandoned Red Sea shipping lanes for longer routes around Africa, raising concerns about global inflation and depriving Egypt of crucial foreign revenue from the use of the Suez Canal.