Following U.S. Attack On Iran, Iran-Backed Militias In Yemen And Iraq Call For Jihad Against U.S. And Israel, Threaten Response Which Will 'Ignite The Region,' Declare 'Confrontation Has Begun'

Memri

4 hours ago

On June 22, 2025, U.S. President Trump called a press conference at the White House and announced that earlier on the same day the United States Army had attacked three major nuclear sites in Iran – Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan.[1] Most of the Iran-backed militias in Yemen and Iraq have yet to issue official responses to the American attack, but media outlets affiliated with them harshly condemned it, describing it as "a grave escalation" and part of the "criminal" American support for Israel. They threatened "to ignite the region" and to attack the American forces deployed there, and urged the entire Islamic nation to wage jihad against the U.S. and Israel. The same militias estimated that Iran would close the Strait of Hormuz and activate the militias it supports in various countries, such as Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen, Pakistan, and Azerbaijan.
The following is a review of reactions from Iran-backed militias in Yemen and Iraq to the U.S. attack on Iran on June 22, 2025:
The Houthi Political Bureau posted a statement it which it condemned "the tyrannical and cowardly American aggression" and described it as "a grave escalation and a direct threat to regional and international peace and security." It also said that the American attack came in the framework of "the criminal and unlimited support" of the U.S. for Israel, and was due to Iran's support for the Palestinian issue and the jihad and resistance movements that oppose Israel. He declared that the Houthis stand with Iran against "the Zionist-American aggression," and urged the Islamic nation to adopt "the option of jihad and resistance, and to act as one, against the Zionist-American arrogance."[2]
Ghurabaa Al-Ridwan, a Telegram channel affiliated with Iran-backed militias in Iraq, shared a series of posts in which it threatened that the response to the American attack "would not be limited and [the attack] would exact a price. Every point of American deployment will be under the fire of the fury and the address is clear: the region will be ignited and no place in it will be safe any longer."
Another post, signed by an unknown group that calls itself "The Special Cell (Ashab Al-Kahf)" read: "The war against the U.S. and its agents in Iraq has begun. The Ayn Al-Assad airbase in Iraq's Al-Anbar Governorate, Camp Al-Harir in Erbil, Victory Base near the Baghdad airport, Habbaniyah base in Al-Anbar Governorate, the espionage and transmission interception and monitoring stations in Sulaymaniyah and the joint operations rooms in the Green [Zone in Baghdad where the U.S. Embassy is located], every hand that served the enemy – we will sever it, and every hypocritical voice – we will silence it. The hour of confrontation has begun."[3]
The Telegram channel surmised that Iran would reserve the right to respond to "the terrorist U.S." and would close the Strait of Hormuz, and also that "fronts would open against the American bases: from Yemen (by the Houthis), from Lebanon (by Hizbullah), from Iraq (by all the [resistance] factions), from Pakistan (by the Zaynabiyoun Brigade), and from Azerbaijan (by the Khomeiniyoun Brigade)."[4]
The Sons of Imam Ali in Syria Telegram channel, affiliated with the country's Alawite community, shared a poster that shows the deployment of "the American occupation bases in the [Middle East] region that are within range of the Iranian missiles." The map on the poster depicts the countries that host American army bases, such as: Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, and includes the alleged numbers of soldiers stationed on the bases.[5]
The Sabereen News Telegram channel, which supports Iran-backed Iraqi Shi'ite militias, posted a photograph of a ship that it claimed is in Israeli waters "facing the coasts of Haifa and Nahariya" which is now "a legitimate target of the Shi'ite missiles." It described what it claimed is the mission of the ship, which it said is to provide rescue, transport, and technical and logistic support.[6]
It is notable that during the days that preceded the American attack, senior officials in Iran-backed militias in Yemen and Iraq threatened to attack American forces and interests in the Middle East, should America intervene in the Israel-Iran war. They also threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz and Bab Al-Mandab Strait, and to attack American ships in the Red Sea.[7]