Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the military, spiritual and political leader of Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi terrorists, warned on Thursday that the expected multifront assault on Israel led by Tehran is “inevitable and will come.”
“The delay in the axis’s response to the Israeli escalation is purely tactical, aimed at ensuring that the response is impactful against the enemy and its preparations,” al-Houthi said, according to reports.
The “Axis of Resistance” includes Iran, the Houthis, Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Iranian-backed terrorist groups in the region.
“The Israeli enemy, after its dangerous escalation, is in a state of great fear in every sense of the word,” al-Houthi continued. “The confirmation of the response from the Islamic Republic of Iran came from the highest leadership levels, and what happened can never be overlooked.
“There is nothing that can divert the decision to respond, such as intimidation or pressure,” he stressed, in reference to ongoing diplomatic efforts by the United States and Europe to de-escalate matters.
Both the Islamic Republic and its Lebanese terrorist army, Hezbollah, have vowed revenge for the targeted killings last week of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut.
The Houthis have also vowed to avenge last month’s Israeli Air Force strikes on Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah, which came after a suicide drone killed one Israeli civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv.
Jerusalem is working to provide citizens with an adequate warning of the Iran-led attack, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Thursday.
“The public’s resilience allows us to make the right operational decisions. In the face of the enemy’s attempt to sow fear, we must continue with routine life,” the minister stated following a situational assessment held at the Israel Defense Forces’ Home Front Command headquarters in Ramla.
“We work to give the public a sufficient warning in real-time,” Gallant said.
The Jewish state remains on high alert for attacks by Iran and its regional terrorist proxies, with the security establishment of the opinion that Hezbollah will strike first.
Channel 12 reported on Wednesday that Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah could see a window of opportunity to initiate an attack in the “coming days.” A large-scale intelligence effort is underway to identify its timing and nature.
Earlier this week, Nasrallah told attendees at a memorial ceremony for Shukr in Beirut that “the [Israeli] enemy is waiting in a state of loss and anxiety,” adding that the prolonged waiting “is part of the punishment.
“Our response is coming, Inshallah [‘God willing’], alone or with the Axis of Resistance, regardless of the ramifications,” he vowed.