It’s Time To Bomb Yemen
On Thursday, the USS Mason shot down suicide drones and anti-ship missiles that were fired by the Houthis, the Iranian-backed Islamists who run Yemen.
This is the 22nd attack on international shipping that was conducted by the Houthis in support of Hamas’s war against Israel. The anti-air and anti-missile defenses of the U.S. Navy are very good but all it takes is for them to fail one time and there will be potentially catastrophic consequences if that happens.
The attacks by the Houthis have all but closed the Red Sea and the Suez Canal to international shipping, despite the Biden administration begging shipping companies to use that route. Instead, international shipping is sailing around the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. The trip is much longer and will result in higher costs for goods which will batter consumers already suffering with higher costs.
The Biden administration tried to assemble an international coalition to oppose the Houthis and protect ships in the Red Sea but many of the partners have since withdrawn from it to protest Israel’s war in Gaza. That is pathetic considering that even just sending a staff officer is considered joining the coalition.
Not helping things is the weakness of the Biden since the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. That disaster has emboldened American enemies from the South China Sea to Ukraine.
These attacks by the Houthis have to stop. Furthermore, these attacks have to stop without pressuring Israel to end its campaign to destroy Hamas in Gaza. The only way to stop these attacks is to retaliate against the Houthis.
I’m not just calling for the bombing of the Houthis in Yemen. I’m calling for the use of drones and missiles as well. We must target and destroy their ability to launch these missile and drone strikes against ships in the Red Sea. In addition, we shouldn’t spare the Houthi leadership from being targeted as well. If we can find a high ranking Iranian military official in Yemen to target, we should also take them out as well.
Freedom of the seas has always been an American interest since the founding of the nation. As a commercial republic, we are dependent upon the ability to move goods freely on the oceans. Right now the Houthis are threatening that and as a result, they need to be bombed further back into the Stone Age than they already are.
We shouldn’t be surprised by the actions of the Houthis. After all, this is a movement with the slogan, “God Is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, A Curse Upon the Jews, Victory to Islam“. I’m pretty sure the Houthis are all that interested in peaceful coexistence with this country. As a nation we need to learn to start taking our enemies at their word when they say they want to destroy us.
Eventually the air and missile defenses of the U.S. Navy will fail and the Houthis will successfully attack a shipping target. Striking the Houthis in this instance will be an example of the best defense being an offense. The Biden administration needs to find the courage and do what is necessary to protect American interests.
Bomb Yemen now.
