Arab Coalition targets Houthi strongholds in Yemen

The Saudi-led coalition carried out airstrikes in Yemen early on Sunday following a wave of Iran-backed Houthi drone and missile attacks on Saudi targets on Friday.

Among the sites targeted in the wave of Houthi drone and missile attacks on Saudi cities was an oil plant that was set ablaze near the Formula One race in Jeddah, marking the rebel’s highest-profile assault yet on the kingdom.

The attack is further proof that Iran’s regional aggression knows no bounds and reinforces the concern of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps being removed from the U.S foreign terror group list.

The Houthis have turned down an invitation to peace talks in Riyadh, scheduled for the coming days, to be hosted by the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council.

Iran’s support for the Houthis, which the UN has documented and verified, includes the provision of suicide drones, ballistic and cruise missiles. This point was highlighted by Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry last week.

The conflict in Yemen has killed hundreds of thousands of people directly or indirectly and displaced millions, creating what the United Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Yet, what happened in Yemen was not a case of Yemeni infighting, but rather a chapter of the regional power conflict and the targeting of Saudi cities is part of Iran’s plan against regional powers standing up to it.

Yemen’s woes began in the summer of 2014, when the Houthi Ansarullah militia attacked and captured the capital. At the time, all but a few in the region truly comprehended the danger that the Houthis would pose to Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and the whole region.

It is not only Saudi Arabia that stands before real risks in the future, but all the states of the region. Iran’s intents know no boundaries or limits.