Houthi military exercise against Israel and U.S
The Houthi military in Yemen posted on Saturday, photos from a military exercise called "Ready for the Campaign of the Promised Conquest and Holy Jihad," showing troops training for an attack on Israel. The Houthis, who are considered to be acting with guidance and assistance from Iran, prepared a model of an Israeli settlement and "occupied" it.
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The buildings used for the exercise were marked with the Star of David and in one of them the Houthis even hung a picture of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In the drill that included the use of drones, the U.S and Israeli flags were burned. In a statement regarding the exercise the Houthis said that it included diverse forces from the Air Force, engineering corps, artillery, armored corps, infantry and more.
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During drill, the Houthis occupied a house with the picture of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
"The units carried out the tasks assigned to them, with control and abilities that reflected the planning and coordination between them, until they managed to take control of an enemy settlement and capture the enemy soldiers, before blowing it up," the Houthis' statement claimed.
Saturday's post came after two days of American and British attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen. Another attack was reported on Saturday, against the Houthi naval military base in Al Hudaydah, from which a missile was fired earlier at coalition forces.
The release of footage of the exercise was likely intended to demonstrate strength and readiness for a military confrontation. The Houthis, despite the attacks in the last two days, repeatedly said that they would not be prevented from supporting the Palestinians in Gaza and that they are interested in a direct confrontation with the U.S, which they claim has failed to hit significant sites.
A senior Houthi official told Al Jazeera on Saturday: "We will not allow the American invasion of our country and will respond soon. The base that the Americans attacked is out of service. The American presence in the area is illegal, our attacks against American military assets are legitimate."
Meanwhile, U.S President Joe Biden said on Saturday that his country conveyed a message to Iran and the Houthis for their responsibility for attacks against ships in the Red Sea. "We delivered it privately and we’re confident we’re well-prepared," the president said.