Blaming Iran, Saudi Says Huthi Strike May Be 'Act Of War': Iran Direct Military Aggression

07 November 2017

EsinIslam And Agencies

Saudi Arabia and Iran traded fierce accusations over Yemen on Monday, with Riyadh saying a rebel missile attack 'may amount to an act of war' and Tehran accusing its rival of war crimes.

Tensions have been rising between Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and predominantly Shiite Iran, which are opposed in disputes and conflicts across the Middle East from Yemen and Syria to Qatar and Lebanon.

On Monday, a Saudi-led military coalition battling Tehran-backed rebels in Yemen said it reserved the 'right to respond' to the missile attack on Riyadh at the weekend, calling it a 'blatant military aggression by the Iranian regime which may amount to an act of war'.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir also warned Tehran.

'Iranian interventions in the region are detrimental to the security of neighbouring countries and affect international peace and security. We will not allow any infringement on our national security,' Jubeir tweeted.

Saudi forces on Saturday intercepted and destroyed the ballistic missile near Riyadh's international airport after it was reportedly fired by Shiite Huthi rebels from Yemen.

It was the first attempted missile strike by the rebels to reach Riyadh and threaten air traffic, underscoring the growing threat posed by the conflict on Saudi Arabia's southern border.

The coalition on Monday sealed off air, sea and land borders in Yemen, where it has been battling rebels in support of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi's internationally recognised government since 2015.

An Iranian foreign ministry statement quoted spokesman Bahram Ghassemi as saying the accusations by the coalition were 'unjust, irresponsible, destructive and provocative'.

Ghassemi said the missile was fired by the Huthis in response 'to war crimes and several years of aggression by the Saudis'.

The missile attack, he said, was 'an independent action in response to this aggression,' and Iran had nothing to do with it.

Rewards for rebel leaders

Repeated attempts to bring about a negotiated settlement to the conflict have failed, including a series of UN-backed peace talks.Saudi Arabia has blamed the Huthis for the failed efforts, and on Monday offered rewards totalling $440 million for information on 40 senior officials among the rebels.Topping the list, with a $30-million reward for tips leading to his capture, was the group's leader Abdulmalik al-Huthi.The Huthis, allied with Yemen's ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh in the conflict, have captured the capital Sanaa, forcing Hadi's government to operate from the southern city of Aden.

Rivalry over Lebanon

Prince Mohammed, who is also defence minister, is seen as a key supporter of the intervention in Yemen.

Analyst Randa Slim of the Middle East Institute said it was unclear whether the Saudi leadership had 'thought through an escalation of the scale they're hinting at'.

Compounding concerns of an escalation, she said, is that US President Donald Trump's administration has also taken a hard line against Iran 'and may not send a deterrent message to Saudi'.

The Saudi-Iran rivalry also played out this weekend in the resignation of Lebanon's prime minister Saad Hariri who said he was stepping down because of the 'grip' of Iran and its ally Hezbollah on the country.

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah hit back on Sunday, saying Hariri's resignation had been 'imposed' by Saudi Arabia.

Iran rejected Hariri's words as 'baseless' and said his resignation was 'designed to create tensions in Lebanon and in the region'.

Hariri, who announced his resignation in Riyadh, on Monday met Saudi King Salman and 'reviewed the situation in Lebanon', the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported. 

Saudi crown prince accuses Iran of direct military aggression

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman accused Iranian regime of direct military aggression against Saudi Arabia by supplying its Houthi militias with missiles, Saudi Press Agency reported.

"The involvement of the Iranian regime in supplying its Houthi militias with missiles is considered a direct military aggression by the Iranian regime and may be considered an act of war against the Kingdom," the crown prince was quoted as saying during a telephone conversation with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.

During the conversation, Johnson expressed his condemnation of the Iranian-allied Houthis launching a ballistic missile on Riyadh and denounced the deliberate targeting of civilians.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition said in a statement on Monday that the ballistic missiles being fired by Houthis from Yemen toward Saudi Arabia, including the one intercepted over Riyadh on Saturday night, were manufactured in Iran.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir also said that Saudi Arabia reserves the right to respond to hostile acts against it by Iran.

Johnson affirmed his country's stand with the Kingdom in confronting security threats.

The two leaders also reviewed regional and international developments.

©  EsinIslam.Com

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