Yemen Warns “Israel”: Expect Further Retaliatory Operations if Rafah is Invaded

By Staff, Agencies

A high ranking official of Yemen's Ansarullah resistance movement has warned of a broader escalation in its attacks if the apartheid “Israeli” entity launches a full-scale invasion of the densely-populated southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip.

Allama Muhammad Muftah, advisor to the President of the Supreme Political Council and Chairman of the Supreme Committee of the National Campaign to Support Al-Aqsa said, "The ‘Israeli’ escalation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and their threat to invade Rafah will be met with a Yemeni response and the launching of the fourth round of escalation," Muftah said.

He was referring to the new phase of the Yemeni army's retaliatory operations on “Israeli”-bound ships in solidarity with the Palestinians facing the “Israeli” genocidal war on Gaza.

"In case of any escalation [in Rafah], the Yemeni armed forces’ decision is clear, and a more extensive and broader escalation may occur," he told the Al-Masirah TV channel on Tuesday.

Muftah further noted that the group's possible escalation would be "a response to any “Israeli” audacity, whether an attack on Yemen, Gaza, or any inch of occupied Palestine."

Yemen's threats of broader escalation in operations “will come to fruition and will achieve its goal and will force the enemy to think a lot about their next actions and revise their calculations before any action.”

This comes as Yahya Saree, a spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces, has already declared the “commencement of the fourth phase of escalation,” amid an expected “Israeli” invasion of Rafah.

Under the new phase, the Yemeni force will target all ships heading to “Israeli”-occupied ports “in the Mediterranean Sea in any area within our reach,” he said.

On Tuesday, “Israeli” occupation forces seized control of the Rafah border crossing, cutting off a vital route for humanitarian aid for an estimated 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in the city bordering Egypt.

The “Israeli” military seized control of the Rafah border crossing after advancing during the night through heavy bombardment of residential areas as fears mount of a full-scale invasion of the city.

The “Israeli” entity says it would continue its aggression against Rafah regardless of an agreement by the resistance movement Hamas to a ceasefire proposal put forward by Qatari and Egyptian mediators.

Rafah had been designated a “safe zone” by the “Israeli” military. Palestinians are now struggling to evacuate the city since the “Israeli” military dropped leaflets ordering them to leave.

UN agencies and humanitarian organizations are cautioning about the severe impact of an “Israeli” invasion of Rafah.