The first three weeks of the new year has seen one conflict spiralling into a slew of other conflicts in West Asia. This has meant that almost all major stakeholders in the region are now involved in one conflict or the other. It is no longer restricted to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict since last October. This could push many countries, with strategic and economic interests in the region like India, to carefully recalibrate their policy towards the region.
The maze of latest face-offs, even though low-intensity as of now, presents a tense security scenario in the region. This is further complicated by the presence of non-state actors, like the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen or Hezbollah in Lebanon, often with support of one state actor against the other. At the same time, militias in Iraq and Syria, with active support of Iran, are targeting US bases, sparking off retaliatory American strikes. The Houthis continue to attack international shipping in the Red Sea, which has resulted in US-UK attacks on the rebel militia in Yemen.
