Netanyahu: If the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is Blocked, Iran Will Face an International Coalition

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that if Iran attempts to block the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it will likely face an international coalition, and Israel will join this coalition. Concurrently, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman stated that Israeli ships have been 'threatened' in the Red Sea waterway. Netanyahu made these remarks during a ceremony for new naval officers in Haifa port. According to Israeli media, Netanyahu warned Iran on Wednesday evening not to attempt to close the Bab el-Mandeb waterway in the Red Sea. He stated, 'If Iran blocks the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it will find itself facing a decisive international force of which Israel will be an integral part.' Netanyahu added that in recent days, 'we have witnessed agents and proxies affiliated with Iran attempting to harm the security of international shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, creating a horrific incident.' He also mentioned, 'The sea enlarges the small area of Israel, allowing us to deploy our vessels on the surface or beneath its waters in vast areas, significantly enhancing Israel's capabilities.' Netanyahu's statements at this military ceremony in Haifa, the main base of the Israeli Navy, were immediately shared on his social media, including in Persian. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's Defense Minister, also stated during the ceremony, 'Recently, we have heard threats regarding harm to Israeli ships in the Red Sea; I look at the forces stationed at this naval base; it is unfortunate that the enemies cannot see you to understand that we are fully prepared to respond to any threat, whether in the Red Sea, the north, or the south.' According to reports, Lieberman added, 'Our army is prepared for any response simultaneously on both the northern and southern fronts and in the Red Sea, but the difference is that in the case of the Red Sea, we have not weighed the situation lightly, and harming our enemies there will be much harder, and I hope they take this into account.' This is the first time senior Israeli leaders have publicly reacted to the recent attack attributed to Ansar Allah, the military branch of the Houthis in Yemen, on two Saudi oil tankers in the western part of the Yemeni port of Hudaydah in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait last week. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean and is very close to southern Israel, is important for both Israel and Saudi Arabia. After the attack on its second tanker, Saudi Arabia halted the passage of its oil-carrying ships through this strait to deliver oil to buyer countries via alternative routes. Israeli media reported that one possibility is that the Iranian-aligned Houthis carried out this maritime attack using unmanned fast boats and launching C-802 type shore-to-sea missiles. Media outlets affiliated with the Houthis and some associated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard welcomed these attacks as targeting a 'Saudi warship.' Fars News Agency, close to the Revolutionary Guard, reported that 'Yemeni revolutionaries have announced a successful attack on two warships and an invading Saudi military boat in Yemeni coastal waters.' The Houthis are accused of receiving military equipment from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and having their forces trained by Iranian advisors. Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, implicitly threatened last week that Iran has the upper hand in 'asymmetric warfare' in the region; his remarks, directed at U.S. President Donald Trump, suggested that 'Iran is close to you,' which was interpreted as a veiled threat to attack U.S. interests and those of its allies, including in regional waterways. Following the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear agreement with Iran and the announcement of the re-imposition of unilateral sanctions, U.S. Treasury officials emphasized last month that Iran's oil exports during this new sanctions period must reach 'zero.' However, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani stated, 'If Iranian oil is not exported, no other country will be able to either.' CNN reported last weekend that senior U.S. government officials are considering military options to counter the potential blockage of regional waterways, with General Joseph Votel, a senior U.S. commander in the region, involved in these discussions. According to CNN, discussions at the U.S. Department of Defense in recent days have included forming a military coalition, but the implementation of such an operation would be with U.S. allies in the region, including Saudi Arabia.