Aden, Jun 19: Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) has issued a warning to the Houthi group against dragging the war-torn Arab nation into regional conflicts amid the escalating Israel-Iran confrontation, local media reported.

In a high-level meeting on Wednesday, the council said it would hold the group and its supporters "fully responsible for the dire consequences and repercussions of any additional reckless actions launched from Yemeni territory."

Such actions, the council warned, would "plunge the country into further crises," including the "increasing militarisation of waterways, threatening food security and the remaining livelihood opportunities, and exacerbating the humanitarian suffering of the Yemeni people."

Despite the warning, the Houthi group on Wednesday reaffirmed its commitment to cross-border operations in support of Gaza, Xinhua reported, quoting the state-run Saba news agency.

Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the Supreme Political Council, the Houthis' highest governing body in Sanaa, characterised the situation in Gaza as "an ongoing criminal Israeli aggression." Speaking through the group's al-Masirah TV, al-Mashat stated that the Houthis' operations in support of Gaza "will not cease, regardless of the extent of the sacrifices."

The PLC's warning comes as military operations between Israel and Iran have intensified since Friday, with Israel continuing attacks on sites and targets within the Islamic Republic while Tehran responds with missile strikes against Israeli territory.

The Houthi group announced on Sunday that it had launched several hypersonic ballistic missiles against "sensitive" targets in Tel Aviv, claiming the attacks were conducted in coordination with Iranian operations against Israel.

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Effie Defrin on Wednesday said that the Israeli Air Force has launched new attacks in western Iran.

He said that Israeli jets flew over launch and storage sites for surface-to-surface missiles on Wednesday evening, targeting operatives attempting to access and remove munitions from locations previously struck.

According to the spokesperson, this marked the third major wave of Israeli airstrikes over Iran in the past 24 hours. The initial overnight operation involved more than 50 fighter jets hitting approximately 40 targets around Tehran.

"Among the targets struck was a centrifuge production site, a key component in the Iranian regime's efforts to enrich uranium," he said, adding that another target struck overnight was a site near Tehran used to manufacture anti-tank missiles, some of which were intended for the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

The second wave of strikes began Wednesday afternoon, with over 20 additional targets in the Tehran area hit.

(IANS)

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