The Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen has done well and continues to do well to expose the scale of Iranian complicity by revealing the extent of Iran’s (and with it Hezbollah’s) involvement in crimes perpetrated in Yemen through their support for the Houthis, targeting maritime navigation, and more.
The information and intelligence- which are supported by audio and video evidence- that have been revealed and will be revealed a second time in the coming weeks by Coalition Spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Malki are extremely important, not because of their impact on Saudi or even Yemeni public opinion, but for their impact on the international community.
This information is certainly shared with allies and security partners. Nonetheless, the fact that they were announced in this manner, amid mobilizations on the ground in Yemen to push back against the Houthis in several areas, is significant.
Exposing the extent of Iranian involvement in Yemen, as well as that of the terrorist group Hezbollah, is a message saying to the international community, at the forefront of which is the United Nations: What next? How long will the international community remain silent about Iran’s criminal interference in Yemen?
That means it threatens the international community as a whole, and safeguarding global security is not the Coalition’s responsibility alone, nor is it solely the responsibility of Saudi Arabia, or the countries of the region. It is the whole world’s responsibility.
Thus, exposing the extent of Iran’s implication, whether in equipping the Houthis with weapons, training them and helping them target ships and engage in piracy, or the targeting of safe areas with drones and ballistic missiles, exposes not only Iran but also the international community’s silence.
This dubious and selective silence, since it overlooks the scale of Iranian and Houthi crimes, encourages the Houthis to continue to commit their crimes and pushes the Iranians to continue to undermine the region’s security, as well as that of maritime navigation.
This selective global silence is behind the Houthis’ rejection of political solutions. At times, it presents them as the victimized party, especially after the Sanaa Airport affair and other lies regarding human rights, which concern neither Iran nor the Houthis in the slightest.
Now, irrefutable audio and video evidence has shown the international community and us how the Sanaa Airport, schools and hospitals, for example, are used to smuggle and launch drone attacks, and launch ballistic missiles.
And so, what should happen and what we hope will happen is that the revelation of this important intelligence will encourage the international community to break its silence on Iran’s crimes in Yemen, as well as encourage the UN to take more serious stances, even merely through statements.
This information, the gravest and most critical of which is kept under wraps, should bear on the position taken by the United States in particular. It should compel them to put the Houthis back on the terror list, as well as mobilize internationally and take firmer stances to ensure the security of maritime navigation.
It should also demonstrate the need to look into Tehran’s ballistic missiles, as well as its militias in the region, particularly those in four Arab capitals, during the negotiations in Vienna around Iran’s nuclear program.
Any negotiations with Iran that overlook its terrorist militias, ballistic missiles, or drones would be a waste of time. Indeed, such negotiations would threaten the security of the region as a whole, which is what Iran is doing right now in Yemen through the Houthi terrorists.
