Israel owes the world a better explanation of its strategy in Gaza than it has given so far. “Eliminating Hamas” is clear enough – but how? The fact that no such explanation is forthcoming suggests that the strategy is indefensible, and that the Israel government knows it. This is the context in which events in the Red Sea are unfolding. Following drone and rocket attacks on international shipping off the coast of Yemen by members of the Houthi rebel group, the United States and United Kingdom have launched retaliatory air strikes on what they believe to be Houthi military bases. Both governments say this has nothing to do with Israel’s actions in Gaza, though that is the reason for the attacks on shipping given by the Houthis. The attacks will stop, they say, when Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza.