Can Israel Fight on Three Fronts?  

T

he flames burning in Yemen’s port of Al Hudaydah for hours last weekend were meant to send a message: If you attack Israel, you can expect retaliation, now matter how far away you are, or how many other battles Israel is fighting.

The official IDF explanation for Operation Outstretched Arm against Yemen’s main port on the Red Sea was retaliation for the Houthi drone attack launched against Tel Aviv on July 19, which left one civilian dead (Yevgeny Ferder Hy”d, 50) and dozens injured. However, many experts suggest that the Israeli Air Force’s bombardment was intended for a broader audience than the Houthis; it was aimed at the terrorist masterminds in Iran.

“I don’t think this attack will stop the Houthi assaults, because Iran is behind them, and Tehran doesn’t care how many Houthis or Arabs die,” says Alexander Grinberg, a retired captain from the IDF Military Intelligence research department and an expert on the Israel-Iran conflict for the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. “But on the other hand, part of Iran’s strategy and that of its proxies is that they don’t believe Israel will be able or willing to do anything. This attack changed the calculus.”

Part of Tehran’s calculus, Grinberg tells Mishpacha, is based on the vast distance separating Yemen from Israel. “The crucial point is that the Israeli Air Force planes, we’re talking about several dozen, traveled a distance of about 2,200 kilometers [1,400 miles] — greater than the distance to Iran. They flew low to avoid detection by enemy radars, which usually takes more time, and yet they completed the mission and returned home without problems. The Iranians understand that Israel could do this in Tehran.”