The Regional War No One Wanted Is Here. How Wide Will It Get?

Source: New York Times

The Regional War No One Wanted Is Here. How Wide Will It Get?

Steven Erlanger
Updated Sat, January 13, 2024 at 10:31 AM EST·8 min read

LONDON — From the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war nearly 100 days ago, U.S. President Joe Biden and his aides have struggled to keep the war contained, fearful that a regional escalation could quickly draw in U.S. forces.

Now, with the U.S.-led strikes on nearly 30 sites in Yemen on Thursday and a smaller strike Friday, there is no longer a question of whether there will be a regional conflict. It has already begun. The biggest questions now are the conflict’s intensity and whether it can be contained.

This is exactly the outcome no one wanted, presumably including Iran.

“We’re not interested in a war with Yemen. We’re not interested in a conflict of any kind,” John Kirby, a White House spokesperson, said Friday. “In fact everything the president has been doing has been trying to prevent any escalation of conflict, including the strikes last night.”

Biden’s decision to unleash airstrikes, after resisting calls to act against the Yemen-based Houthi militants whose repeated attacks on shipping in the Red Sea were beginning to take a toll on global commerce, is a clear shift in strategy. After issuing a series of warnings, officials said, Biden felt his hand was forced after a barrage of missile and drone attacks Tuesday were directed at an American cargo ship and the Navy vessels around it.

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Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/regional-war-no-one-wanted-151931875.html

Original NYT link (paywall): https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/12/us/politics/mideast-war-israel-yemen.html