Erdogan accuses US, Britain of trying to turn Red Sea into 'sea of blood'

ANKARA, January 12. /TASS/. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan slammed the United States and Great Britain for a disproportionate use of force in their attacks on the Ansar Allah (Houthi) rebel movement in Yemen and for trying to turn the Red Sea into "a sea of blood."

"They used force disproportionately and they are trying to turn the Red Sea into a sea of blood. Israel is doing the same in Palestine," the Turkish leader told reporters. "We are currently getting news through numerous channels. And through various channels we learn that the Houthis are mounting a successful response," he added.

Last night, the armed forces of the United States and the United Kingdom delivered air strikes on positions held by the Ansar Allah (Houthi) rebel movement in several Yemeni cities, using aircraft, warships and submarines. US President Joe Biden said the military action was ordered in response to "unprecedented Houthi attacks" on shipping in the Red Sea and that the strikes, targeting Houthi munitions depots, launching systems, production facilities, and air defense radar systems, were delivered in self-defense. The Yemeni capital Sanaa, as well as four provinces — Hodeidah, Taiz, Hajjah and Saada — were hit as the US and UK have so far delivered 73 strikes on Yemen, killing five Houthi fighters and leaving six others injured, the Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saria, said.

After the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis warned that they would launch strikes on Israeli territory while barring ships associated with the Jewish state from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until Tel Aviv ceased its military operation against Palestinian radical group Hamas in the embattled enclave. According to estimates by the US Defense Department’s Central Command (CENTCOM), the Yemeni rebel group has attacked more than 20 vessels and civilian ships in the Red Sea since mid-November.