Will Team Biden Ever Stand Up to Adversaries?
Since the horrific Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack against Israel, the Houthi rebels, an Iranian terrorist proxy group in Yemen, have attempted to join the Israel-Hamas War by firing missiles and attack drones against Israel and shipping in the Red Sea.
Most of these projectiles fell short of their targets or were shot down; a few struck commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
The Houthis also hijacked a ship with ties to Israel late last month.
Earlier this month, the U.S. asked Israel not to retaliate against the Houthis over the missile attacks out of concern this could escalate tensions with Iran.
Instead, the U.S. is working to assemble a maritime coalition in the Red Sea to deter further Houthi attacks.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 12 that several nations are sending ships or considering doing so.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said earlier today the Houthi rebels are a "threat to freedom of navigation to commercial shipping" and said the U.S. is forming a broad coalition to stop the Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping.
Sullivan blamed Iran for these attacks, saying "while the Houthis are pulling the trigger, so to speak, they’re being handed the gun by Iran."
Iran on Thursday rejected U.S. plans to form a maritime coalition to counter the Houthi attacks, warning that such a force would face "extraordinary problems".
Meanwhile, Houthi missile attacks on Red Sea shipping continued this week.
Early today, the Houthis launched their seventh attack on shipping in the Red Sea since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack when it attacked two cargo ships.
One ship was struck by an attack drone, causing a small fire.
A ballistic missile hit the other ship, knocking a container off the ship and causing a small fire. No injuries were reported in these attacks.
On Thursday, the Houthis fired two missiles that narrowly missed a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker.
The U.S. Navy Destroyer Mason shot down an attack drone fired by the Houthis that was part of this attack.
On Monday, the Houthis hit a Norwegian oil and chemical tanker in the Red Sea with an anti-ship cruise missile. This missile caused a fire on the ship but no causalities.
A French navy ship shot down a Houthi drone fired on the Norwegian ship and blocked an attempt to hijack it.
The Houthi attacks against Israel and Red Sea shipping since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack probably were ordered by Iran or conducted by the Houthis in support of Iran and Hamas, another Iranian terrorist proxy.
After Houthi missiles and attack drones fired against Israel in early to mid-October failed to hit their targets, it appears the Houthis shifted to firing missiles at ships in the Red Sea.
The Yemeni Houthis are a Shiite group aligned with Iran that has been fighting against Yemen’s Sunni-majority government since 2004.
Saudi Arabia entered the civil war in 2009 and has been mired in this conflict. The Saudis have conducted thousands of airstrikes against the Houthi positions.
The Houthis retaliated with missile attacks against Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The Yemen civil war has been called the world’s worst humanitarian crisis and led to the deaths of an estimated 377,000 between 2015 and 2022.
Although a UN cease-fire in the civil war lapsed in October 2022, fighting between the Houthis and pro-government forces has been at a low level since that time.
Iran uses the Houthis as a terrorist proxy against Saudi Arabia and to destabilize the Arabian Peninsula and its waters.
Despite a UN arms embargo on Iran, it has shipped large amounts of weapons and ammunition to the Houthis, including anti-tank missiles, assault rifles, machine guns, and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
Sophisticated missiles and attack drones provided by Iran enabled the Houthis to strike Saudi and UAE targets on the Persian Gulf over 1,000 miles away from Houthi-occupied western Yemen.
In February 2021, the Biden administration reversed the Trump administration’s decision to place the Houthi rebels on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.
After this decision, the Biden administration repeatedly urged the Houthis in 2021 and 2022 to cease engaging in acts of belligerence and terrorism, including missile attacks on civilians, hijacking ships, and several missile attacks on Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
As a result, in February 2022, the Biden administration was considering putting the Houthis back on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.
No action was taken at that time.
The Biden Administration reportedly is again considering adding the Houthis to this list in response to its recent missile and drone attacks against Israel and Red Sea shipping.
Instead of the U.S. or Israel retaliating against the Houthis for their missile and drone attacks, the Biden administration has adopted an approach of restraint and forming a maritime coalition in the Red Sea to deter further Houthi attacks.
Based on the new Houthi missile attacks this week, it is clear that this approach is not working. The Houthi rebel missile and drone attacks will only be stopped by a serious response to these flagrant acts of aggression — the use of military force.
The U.S. did this in 2016 when it fired missiles at Houthi radar installations after they fired missiles at a U.S. Navy destroyer.
The Houthis should be given an ultimatum that any further missile or drone attacks on shipping or Israel will result in a massive missile attack on Houthi missile and military targets in Yemen by the United States and its allies.
In the meantime, the Biden administration should immediately re-designate the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization.
As long as the Houthis and their terrorist sponsor Iran believe there will be no consequences for firing missiles on Red Sea shipping, these attacks will continue, and the Houthis and Iran will be emboldened to conduct new acts of terrorism and belligerence.
The Houthis and Iran respect strength, not idle threats or symbolic coalitions.
Fred Fleitz is Vice Chair of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for American Security and a Newsmax TV Contributor. He previously served as National Security Council Chief of staff, CIA analyst, and as a member of the House Intelligence Committee staff. Read more reports from Fred Fleitz — Click Here Now.
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