233: Chapter 233 The Red Sea Shield, Irrefutable Evidence

Ibrahim stiffened all over.

"He killed my sister," Mustafa's voice was still very soft. "She was holding her newborn baby at the time. Your nephew used a bayonet, one by one..."

The scimitar was suddenly raised!

A flash of the blade!

Ibrahim's head rolled to the ground, his eyes still wide with terror.

Mustafa grabbed the head, held it high, and roared with all his might, "Bani Amir!!!"

"Roar—!!!" All the tribal warriors around, no matter which tribe they came from, followed with an earth-shattering roar.

Houssa watched this scene, knowing that the army's morale was now completely unified.

He opened the encrypted channel and began to tally the spoils of war:

[Sovereign, Azan Town has been captured. Preliminary statistics: Approximately 500 enemy troops killed (including outlying strongholds), 212 captured; seized 2 T-72 tanks (repairable), 4 BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, 3 122mm howitzers, and various light weapons, ammunition, and supplies. Our casualties: 37 killed, 89 wounded.]

[Among the prisoners, one Squid Nation military consultant was found (already detained separately), along with two Saudi Arabian intelligence personnel. Among the seized documents is the original secret agreement between the Squid Nation and Ibrahim's forces regarding the 'Joint Clearing of Southern Tribal Militias.']

[Recommendation: Immediately execute all officers and foreign personnel among the prisoners. The remaining soldiers will be released after brief education to spread fear. Our forces will rest today and move toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait tomorrow.]

A moment later, Zhang Cheng's reply arrived:

[The results are plentiful. Execution recommendation approved. But remember: after a great victory in the first battle, troops are prone to arrogance. Enforce strict military discipline, especially toward civilians. What we want are liberators, not another group of bandits.]

[Understood.]

Houssa closed the communication and looked toward the rising sun in the east.

The smoke from Azan Town was still rising, but a more important battlefield was already looming on the horizon of the Red Sea.

The news of the great victory at Azan Town was like a depth charge dropped along the coast of the Red Sea.

Initially, the official response from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates was silence and denial—they insisted it was an "exaggerated report of tribal conflict" and claimed that "the situation in southern Yemen is under the control of the coalition forces." But three days later, when a fifteen-minute high-definition video actively released by Houssa's side began to play on loop on Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya, this pale denial was completely torn to shreds.

The video not only contained clips of the battle in Azan Town (including spectacular scenes of rocket artillery volleys, pickup truck commando charges, and the final moments of Ibrahim's execution), but more importantly, it displayed the seized documents and the "confession" of that Squid Nation military consultant.

The consultant was named Amir Cohen, in his thirties, wearing rumpled military fatigues. His eyes dodged the camera, but his speech was clear:

"I... I was ordered to come to southern Yemen. My mission was to assist General Ibrahim Zakaria in integrating local forces and establishing control over the Red Sea coast to provide a forward base for future possible... uh, 'special military operations.' The operation is code-named 'Red Sea Shield,' directly planned by the Squid Nation Defense Forces Intelligence Bureau, with the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince's Office being aware and providing partial funding..."

The video also showed a scan of the secret agreement—bearing Ibrahim's signature and the encrypted seal of the Squid Nation Intelligence Bureau. The content explicitly stated the intent to "purge uncooperative tribes when necessary to ensure the absolute security of the southern shore of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait."

This had already exceeded the scope of "tribal conflict."

This was irrefutable evidence of major powers directly interfering in other nations' internal affairs and planning ethnic cleansing.

The Arab world was in an uproar. Countries like Qatar and Oman, which already had reservations about the Saudi-UAE coalition's military operations in Yemen, publicly called for "respect for Yemen's sovereignty and territorial integrity." Even Egypt, which had always been pro-Saudi, rarely expressed "concern."

Meanwhile, the international shipping industry sensed an even more dangerous atmosphere.

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is only 29 kilometers at its narrowest point. Every day, over four million tons of goods pass through here, nearly half of which is crude oil. Supertankers sailing from the Persian Gulf to Europe and North America must pass through this bottleneck. If something happens here, global oil prices will skyrocket.

And Houssa's troops, after resting for two days in Azan Town, had begun to move toward the mountainous areas on the southern shore of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as he had planned.

Five days later, the southwestern tip of Yemen, the southern shore of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The terrain here is extremely rugged—the coastline consists of steep cliffs, and towering mountains plunge almost directly into the sea. Only a few rugged winding mountain roads connect the coast to the interior. Because the terrain is treacherous and easy to defend but hard to attack, it has always been a strategic prize and a paradise for pirates and smugglers.

Houssa chose a hilltop code-named "Eagle Beak Rock" as the main position. It sits about 400 meters above sea level, with a nearly vertical cliff facing the Red Sea and three mountain paths passable by pickup trucks on the side facing inland. The summit is relatively flat, about the size of two football fields, with an excellent view—on a clear day, the silhouette of Djibouti on the opposite shore can be seen directly with high-powered binoculars.

More importantly, about 300 meters below "Eagle Beak Rock," there is a naturally formed sea cave. The entrance is concealed, and the space inside is large enough to accommodate several small speedboats. This is the emergency evacuation route Houssa reserved, and a possible entry point for receiving future maritime supplies.

"This place," Houssa said, standing on a rock at the summit and facing the salty sea breeze, to Mahmoud and Mustafa beside him, "is our new home. It is also where the nightmare begins for the Saudi princes and their American masters."

Mahmoud looked at the deep blue seawater beneath his feet with concern: "Houssa, are we really going to deploy missiles here? Once we open fire, we'll be making enemies of half the world."

"We won't fire first," Houssa pulled a nautical chart from his pocket and spread it on the rock. "We will only demonstrate that we have the capability to fire. Do you see this line?" His finger traced an arc on the chart. "Twenty nautical miles from the coastline is the internationally recognized territorial sea boundary. What we need to do is set up missile launchers within this line. As long as our missiles can cover the center line of the strait, that will be enough."

Mustafa licked his lips, his eyes flashing with excitement: "When will the missiles arrive?"

"Tonight." Houssa looked toward the inland direction. "The System will deliver the goods to Saleh Port via a 'smuggled ship running aground.' What we need to do is transport all the equipment up the mountain before dawn and complete the camouflage and calibration."

He paused, his tone becoming serious: "Remember, this is the heaviest bargaining chip in our hands, and also the biggest target. Once deployment is complete, the position will implement the highest level of alert: triple sentries, radar on twenty-four hours a day, and anti-aircraft missiles ready at all times. If any enemy aircraft or drones are found approaching our airspace, shoot them down immediately without needing to ask for instructions."