The U.S. on Friday accused Iran of close involvement in attacks on commercial ships by Yemen's Houthi rebels, stepping up the tone as Washington considers tougher measures including possible force.
The White House publicly released U.S. intelligence as the Iranian-linked Yemeni insurgents persist with ship strikes they say are in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is battling Hamas militants.
The White House said that Tehran's clerical state has provided drones and missiles to the Houthis as well as tactical intelligence.
"We know that Iran was deeply involved in planning the operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea," National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said.
"We have no reason to believe that Iran is trying to dissuade the Houthis from this reckless behavior," she said.
The Houthis, who control vast parts of the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, including the capital Sanaa, have launched more than 100 drone and missile attacks, targeting 10 merchant vessels, according to the Pentagon.
On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held an emergency meeting with defense officials from dozens of countries, along with the European Union and NATO, to address what he called "reckless, dangerous" attacks which "violate international law."
Last week, U.S. Central Command reported that the USS Carney, a guided missile destroyer, engaged and destroyed 14 attack drones believed to have been launched from Houthi-controlled regions of Yemen.
In a recent interview with CBS News, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian denied Iran's involvement in a drone attack from Yemen that was intercepted by the USS Thomas Hudner. U.S. officials stated that the drone appeared to be targeting the Hudner at the time of interception.
"We did not want this crisis to escalate," Amir-Abdollahian told CBS News, referring to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. "However, the U.S. has been escalating the war in Gaza by supporting Israel. Yemen acts independently and makes its own decisions."
Earlier this week, energy giant BP announced a temporary suspension of all gas and oil shipments in the Red Sea due to the ongoing attacks.
In response to the disruption of commercial traffic, the U.S. recently formed a multinational naval task force consisting of more than 20 countries to safeguard vessels transiting the Red Sea.
As a show of strength, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower has entered the Gulf of Aden.
Rebel leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi issued a warning on Wednesday, stating that if they were attacked, the rebels would retaliate against "American battleships, American interests, and American navigation."
The White House announced that a U.S. analysis has discovered striking similarities between Iran's KAS-04 drones and the unmanned vehicles used by the Houthis. Additionally, there are consistent features between Iranian and Houthi missiles, indicating a close relationship between the two entities.
The White House also revealed that the Houthis rely on Iranian-provided monitoring systems at sea. This dependency on Iran further strengthens the evidence of their collaboration.
Furthermore, the White House stated that Iranian-provided tactical intelligence has played a crucial role in enabling the Houthis to target maritime vessels since November. This highlights Iran's active involvement in the Houthi attacks.
The Biden administration initially maintained a restrained approach towards the Houthi attacks, as it aimed to preserve the fragile peace in Yemen. The Houthis and the Saudi-backed government have successfully upheld a truce brokered by the United Nations since April 2022, effectively ending a devastating war and alleviating the humanitarian crisis that ensued.
It is important to note that while Iran openly supports Hamas, there is currently no evidence suggesting that Tehran had prior knowledge or directly planned the attack carried out by Hamas gunmen on Gaza's militarized border. Israel, on the other hand, has declared its determination to dismantle Hamas, resulting in a high death toll, primarily consisting of civilians.
