McConnell welcomes US-led strikes on Houthis in Yemen 

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) welcomed air and naval strikes by the United States and five allies Thursday against Houthi militia-controlled sites in Yemen in retaliation of Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea.  

McConnell this week warned that the United States now faces the greatest national security threat since the Berlin Wall came down and has criticized President Biden for not acting more swiftly to counter Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  

But the Senate GOP leader expressed his approval of the Biden administration’s response to Houthi drone, missile and small-craft attacks on U.S. naval ships and commercial shipping in the Red Sea, a crucial trade route.   

“I welcome the U.S. and coalition operations against the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists responsible for violently disrupting international commerce in the Red Sea and attacking American vessels. President Biden’s decision to use military force against these Iranian proxies is overdue,” McConnell said in a statement.  

“I am hopeful these operations mark an enduring shift in the Biden Administration’s approach to Iran and its proxies. To restore deterrence and change Iran’s calculus, Iranian leaders themselves must believe that they will pay a meaningful price unless they abandon their worldwide campaign of terror,” he said. “The United States and our allies must leave no room to doubt that the days of unanswered terrorist aggression are over.”  

Mohammed Abdul Salam, a Houthi spokesman, told Al Jazeera that Houthi militia members will strike back, declaring: “It’s not possible for us not to respond to these operations.” 

McConnell has urged the Biden administration for weeks to take a tougher approach to Iranian-backed militias and terrorist organizations threatening Israel and U.S. troops in the Middle East.  

He faulted the Biden administration in mid-November and again in early December for removing Houthis from the terrorism list and warned that such “displays of weakness” embolden Iranian aggression.  

Last month, he warned that attacks on freedom of navigation are a direct challenge to American leadership.  

He pointed out that since October, Houthis have “repeatedly used lethal force in brazen attacks against both military and commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea” and that an American destroyer had engaged and destroyed 14 terrorist drones. 

“Make no mistake: An undeterred adversary is laying down a direct challenge to American leadership. And the world is watching to see if we rise to meet it the way we’ve met it before countless times,” he said on the Senate floor.  

On Monday, the Senate GOP leader denounced the Houthis’ campaign on civilian ships in the Red Sea as “an assault on the global economy that the world has no choice but to address.” 

Sen. Roger Wicker (Miss.), the senior Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, also welcomed the strikes. 

“This strike was two months overdue, but it is a good first step toward restoring deterrence in the Red Sea. I appreciate that the administration took the advice of our regional commanders and targeted critical nodes within Houthi-controlled Yemeni territory,” he said. “It is important that we follow this action in close consultation with our Saudi partners to ensure they are with us as the situation develops.” 

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Subcommittee on Defense, said the Biden administration needs to send a clear message that the disruption of critical sea lanes “will not be tolerated.”  

She noted that Iranian-backed proxies have targeted U.S. military personnel, bases and ships more than 120 times since October.  

“The United States does not seek an escalation of violence in the region, but we must deter attacks on our troops and the freedom of navigation that is essential for global trade must be restored,” she said.

Updated at 12:14 p.m. ET