Hodeida, Yemen, a port operated by Houthi terrorists is burning. Israel
bombed a large weapons depot there.
The strike was retaliation for a drone strike on Tel Aviv by the Houthis, who were likely aiming for the US Consulate located adjacent to the beach. The drone missed by about 1,000 feet and instead hit an apartment building, killing a 50-year-old man and wounding eight others.
It was not by any means the first Houthi strike on US assets in the region. It was, however, a demonstration of growing brazenness on the part of the terrorists.
The first lesson is that an absence of deterrence – a failure to strike the fear of retaliation into your enemies – leads, inevitably, to escalation on their part. One of President Joe Biden’s first acts in office was to remove the terror designation from the Houthis, despite their relentless attacks on Saudi oil facilities and civilian infrastructure.
With no fear of US or Saudi attack, they have escalated over the past three and a half years. With longer-range drones and missiles, the Houthis have made the Red Sea almost impassable and reduced traffic in the Suez Canal by 66 percent since 2023.
In January, two American servicemen lost their lives in the Red Sea in a raid to confiscate Iranian weapons enroute to the Houthis. Instead of punishment, or exacting a price, or instilling fear, the US and allied ships in the Red Sea mostly tried to shoot down the drones and missiles. In only a few instances has the US tried to knock out launch sites and, just last week, Houthi radars.
In other words, there was no reason for the Houthis to stop.
It isn’t as if the US military didn’t understand the attacks and the stakes. General Erik Kurilla, the USCENTCOM commander and a regular visitor to Israel, was there just before the attack, meeting with Israeli military and intelligence officials. It is reported – though not independently confirmed – that Kurilla had written to US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, calling the ecampaign against the Houthis a failure. He reportedly blamed an unwillingness by American officials to commit to broader operations for fear of regional
escalation.
Kurilla further stated in the letter, it is reported, that if this were allowed to continue, American service members would die. He is, of course, right. It was almost inevitable that a Houthi missile or drone would kill more American sailors or sink a US warship.
Austin, perhaps not having read Kurilla’s missive, put out a statement following the attack:
I spoke to Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant today … and expressed my condolences for the Israeli citizen killed and others wounded in the attack. While the explosion occurred near our US Embassy Branch Office, there are currently no reported injuries or deaths to US personnel. I reaffirmed that our commitment to Israel’s security and right to self-defense remains ironclad.
US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew had the same mantra. “Shocked by the brazen Houthi drone attack in Tel Aviv this morning. We offer our condolences to the family members of the individual who passed away. We are thankful our US Embassy Branch Office personnel are all safe.”
Read, “It wasn’t about us. It wasn’t aimed at us. We’re not going to do anything about it. If Israel wants to do something, OK. But it’s not us.”
That policy is appeasement. Bend over and let Iran wreak havoc in the Middle East and Persian Gulf region. Exactly why Biden has sold out to Iran is anyone’s guess. It doesn’t
matter. Willing to attack Russia through Ukrainian proxies, the administration will not attack Iran or Iranian proxies, including the Houthis, Hezbollah or Hamas – and the Americans have counseled Israel not to respond beyond certain parameters, which the US determines.
Wisely, Israel has determined its own parameters for action. That is the second lesson. If the Houthis want a war with Israel, they had better think hard about the consequences. Israeli warplanes have (minimally) destroyed a significant part of the port of Hodeida, the entry point for Iranian weapons and launch site for those weapons.
Today there is a lot of talk about “proportionality” in warfare, a one-way-street argument that says you should do no more than your enemy does. It is a ridiculous notion, especially in the murderous environment of the Middle East.
If you practice proportionality, you assure future failure. Israel, again, has determined its own parameters for action against the Houthi military and appears to have hit Houthiland hard. The Houthis are unlikely to quit and will again attack Israel and the United States. Israel should not have to do this job alone.
That raises the issue of the feckless, compromised Biden administration and its failure to defend America’s interests and/or its allies. Leaving aside the result of the coming American election, the creation of a weak and frightened America is an awful legacy. More blood will be on the hands of the Biden administration.
