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- Supporter — observer: The Houthis do not intend to enter the war between Iran and Israel yet
Supporter — observer: The Houthis do not intend to enter the war between Iran and Israel yet
The Middle East is facing an unprecedented escalation: the death of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the start of Israel's operation in Lebanon have brought the region to the brink of a major war. Izvestia found out the position regarding the participation in the conflict of one of the most active players in the "axis of resistance" — the Yemeni Houthis. The Ansar Allah movement stated that they do not plan to directly intervene in the confrontation yet, as they believe that Iran has enough resources to defend itself. Meanwhile, the Kremlin said that Russia is in constant contact with the Iranian leadership and remains committed to a political settlement of the conflict. But a number of European countries are considering joining the fighting against the Islamic Republic.
The attitude of the Yemeni Houthis to the attacks on Iran
Despite direct attacks against one of the countries of the "axis of resistance", one of its key participants, the Yemeni Ansar Allah movement (Houthis), is not yet considering the possibility of direct military intervention in the conflict, Izvestia found out. A source in Ansar Allah told the publication that the leadership in Sanaa is closely monitoring developments, since the war is directed not only against Iran, but also against the entire "axis of resistance."
"At the moment, there is no intention to interfere, and Yemen is limited to popular, informational and moral support, given that Iran is able to withstand pressure on its own," the source told Izvestia.
At the same time, according to him, in the event of a US or Israeli strike on Yemeni territory, a response is possible.
A member of the Ansar Allah political bureau, Khuzam al-Assad, also expressed his position on the conflict.
— Our support for Iran lies in solidarity and recognition of its right to respond to the criminal American-Israeli aggression, during which a number of the country's leaders were attacked. Iran has a military potential sufficient to repel attacks and defeat the enemy. The Yemeni people and armed forces are in a state of full combat readiness," he told Izvestia.
According to him, the issue of possible direct military intervention by the Houthis in the current fighting remains the subject of assessment by the leadership of the movement.
Yemeni political analyst Sanda al-Sayyadi expressed the opinion that the Houthis will act based on how the conflict develops.
— If Iran needed Yemeni support, as it did with Palestine, the country would not hesitate. Yemen has been and continues to be subjected to aggression from the United States from various sides, as well as Lebanon, Iraq and other countries, the expert noted, adding that the Houthis may resume support for Gaza.
Russia is looking for a way out of the crisis
During the attack by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28, the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed. Iran has declared 40 days of mourning. Russian President Vladimir Putin has described Khamenei's murder as a cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the actions of the United States and Israel and called for an immediate de-escalation and cessation of hostilities.
Russia is in constant contact with the Iranian leadership and, despite Washington's actions, remains committed to a political settlement, Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. In parallel, the search for a way out of the crisis is also underway in dialogue with the Arab world: Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in the region in detail in a telephone conversation with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The Russian leader thanked his colleague for helping Russians who were unable to leave the Emirates due to the strikes on Iran.
In addition, Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with the Crown Prince, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. In his opinion, the Russian side can play a positive role these days, given its friendly relations with both Iran and the Persian Gulf countries.
The conflict in the Middle East is growing
Meanwhile, fighting between Israel and Hezbollah resumed in Lebanon, marking the first serious escalation since the end of 2024. Israeli strikes in the south and east of the country, as well as in the suburbs of Beirut, followed rocket launches from Lebanon into northern Israel, for which the Shiite movement claimed responsibility.
The Israeli strike killed the head of Hezbollah's political wing and a member of parliament, Mohammed Raad. Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz also called Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem a "target for destruction." The Lebanese government has announced a total ban on all Hezbollah military activities and called on the movement to surrender its weapons. Hezbollah has been asked to limit itself to political activities only.
The US and Israeli strikes on Iran are also continuing. According to the Iranian Red Crescent, the death toll was at least 555 people. Iran is responding with strikes against US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Four American servicemen were killed, five were seriously injured, several US fighter jets crashed in Kuwait, the pilots survived.
Cyprus was also hit: according to British Defense Minister John Healy, Iran fired two missiles towards the island, where the British Akrotiri air base is located.
The Kuwait Army reported that a member of the navy was killed during an operation conducted by the country's armed forces.
Iran has also attacked the Saudi Aramco oil plant in Saudi Arabia, and its operation has been temporarily suspended. A number of facilities in the UAE, including Abu Dhabi and Dubai, were also affected by the Iranian attacks. Thousands of tourists are stuck there. Although on March 2, some flights were still able to depart from the UAE.
According to media reports, Iran has launched a new super-heavy missile in the direction of one of the US military bases. The NourNews agency published a video of the rocket launch, specifying that the strike was carried out on an American base located in the Middle East.
Iran's retaliatory actions provoke a harsh reaction from neighboring Arab states. Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid bin Mohammed al-Ansari said Iran "must pay the price for this apparent attack," stressing that such an attack cannot go unanswered.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry summoned the Iranian ambassador in Amman, expressing strong protest against "attacks on the territory of Jordan and fraternal Arab countries," calling them a violation of sovereignty.
In turn, The Washington Post reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud has repeatedly called Trump over the past month, advocating a US attack, despite his public support for a diplomatic solution.
Iran's strikes on Saudi Arabia's oil storage facilities, as well as facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, demonstrate the "chaotic nature of Tehran's actions," which are carried out despite the fact that these countries adhered to neutrality and tried to contain the escalation, said Roman Yanushevsky, editor-in-chief of the website of the 9th Israeli TV channel. According to him, this behavior indicates an internal crisis and the lack of a unified strategy.
"The Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and subsequent events led to the weakening of the axis of resistance — Hamas is now focused on survival, Hezbollah is regaining strength, and the Houthis have not resumed attacks on Israel," he told Izvestia.
According to him, Tehran found itself virtually face-to-face with military pressure from the United States and Israel, and decades of investment in military and nuclear programs did not pay off: Iranian nuclear facilities were hit, and the missile program suffered serious losses and may face a new strike.
However, the country's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that Tehran had retaliated against Israel and American bases in the region and was ready to defend itself as long as necessary. The foreign minister stressed that Iran intends to avenge the assassination of Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling him a "martyr leader." Alireza Arafi replaced Khamenei as interim supreme leader.
US President Donald Trump said that the war could last for several more weeks, stressing his readiness to support strikes against Iran for four to five weeks. He added that Tehran had approached the United States with a proposal for negotiations, which Washington was ready to do.
The current escalation demonstrates that the conflict in the Middle East goes beyond local clashes and has the potential to drag on not only the entire region, but also European countries.
Israel's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Danny Danon, commenting on Tehran's reports of numerous civilian casualties, said that as part of the operation, the Israeli side is striking exclusively at Iran's military infrastructure. At the same time, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said earlier that the death toll from the US and Israeli strikes on a girls' school in the city of Minab had reached 171 people.
Earlier, the leaders of France, Germany and the United Kingdom issued a joint statement expressing outrage at Iran's "indiscriminate and disproportionate missile attacks" on a number of countries in the region and warned of the possibility of a military response if attacks on their allies continued. The statement emphasizes that the strikes also targeted States that did not participate in the American-Israeli operation against the Islamic Republic.
European leaders demanded that Tehran immediately stop the attacks and threatened to take measures to protect its interests and those of its allies, including "defensive actions" to eliminate Iran's missile and drone launch capabilities. German Foreign Minister Johann Vadefuhl clarified that Berlin has no plans to participate in attacks on Iran. At the same time, the Eurotroika ignores the fact that the United States was the first to unleash a military conflict and violate international law.
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