Lhe Middle East was set ablaze on October 7 in an unleashing of hatred, violence and destructive terror. The wall surrounding Gaza gave way, as in their time the Wall of China, the Maginot line or the Bar-Lev line in October 1973 [pendant la guerre du Kippour].
Western forces are trying to contain the conflict. They are reduced to defensiveness in their vulnerable land bases, as in 1983 in Beirut [les attentats du Drakkar avaient coûté la vie à 58 parachutistes français], subject to daily drone and missile attacks in Iraq and Syria. The American air force, based in Incirlik, Turkey, is paralyzed by tensions with the host country.
Since the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, American forces have given the impression of losing interest in the Middle East. October 7 marks a strong return by sea. Historically, the American Navy has always accompanied Israel to prevent surprises. This did not always please the Israelis, at Suez in 1956, but also in 1967, when they sank the American spy ship Liberty to signal that they retained control of the military action. For years, American units have been present within the Combined Task Force [« force opérationnelle combinée »] due to piracy and attacks on Israeli merchant ships by the Iranians, in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Naval reinforcements are deployed to the north and south. In the Mediterranean, the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Fordas well as the submarine Ohio have been sailing from on October 10 in front of Syrian and Lebanese waters to ward off threats, monitor the situation and support the eastern flank. It is also a question of preventing action by the Russian navy, which President Putin notes when he accuses the United States of inflaming the Middle East with their aircraft carriers. In the Persian Gulf, theUSS Dwight–Eisenhower faces Iran and Iraq. Chinese, French and British naval forces are in the area.
Provocations in the Red Sea
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have declared war on Israel. They are widening the conflict by firing missiles and drones towards Eilat, intercepted in the Red Sea by American destroyers, pushing Israel to deploy missile corvettes in the Gulf of Aqaba. They warn that their armed forces will not hesitate to target any Israeli vessel in the Red Sea, those that approach them and those that disconnect their identification system.
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