Yemen Monitor / Tehran / Exclusive:
The commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), General Esmail Qaani, announced the formation of what he described as a “new security belt” for the Axis of Resistance, extending from the Strait of Hormuz to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, while praising their Houthi allies in Yemen.
General Qaani said, in a post on social media networks on Monday, that the geographical region extending from the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz all the way to the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait has come to form the new security belt for the so-called “Resistance Front.”
These statements came in the wake of strikes and military operations carried out by Tehran and the Houthis against Israel following the escalation by the Israeli occupation in the southern suburb of Beirut, where its operations continue against Hezbollah, a prominent ally of the Houthis and Iran.
The Houthis announced launching ballistic missile attacks toward Israel and imposing a ban on Israeli navigation in the Red Sea, while the occupation army announced intercepting one ballistic missile.
The Iranian military commander directly praised the Houthi attacks, describing them as a “capable and timely movement,” and considered them a clear indication of the “intelligence of the Resistance Front.” Qaani also hinted at the possibility of the conflict expanding and other parties entering the maritime confrontation if the situation requires it.
In the context of his threatening speech, the commander of the Quds Force indicated that what he described as the “malicious actions” of the United States and Israel in the region will not go unpunished and will lead to a decisive response from the “Unified Resistance Front.” Addressing the two countries, he added: “The fighters without borders are watching you, and if you continue your aggressions, they will tighten the grip around your necks.”
Ali Velayati, the senior advisor to the Supreme Leader of Iran for international affairs, had said hours before the Israeli response and the Houthi attacks that the Axis of Resistance possesses the capability to close the Straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab, presenting the Israelis/Americans with a decisive choice between “stopping the aggression or facing coordinated control over both vital waterways.” He said, “The current security of the Bab al-Mandab Strait should not lead the enemy to miscalculations.”
