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Opinion | UAE Attack - Signal to US Government | Israel today

2022-01-21T12:55:45.757Z


Iran arms the Houthis and conducts itself as the head of a criminal organization, whose soldiers do their job • The international community must charge Tehran a price for the deeds of its emissaries


"The message we sought to convey to the Emirates has reached its destination," said Yahya Saria, a spokesman for the Houthi rebels in Yemen, following the unusual UAV attack (unmanned aerial vehicle) in the heart of Abu Dhabi earlier this week.

"Yemen Storm" is the name given by the Houthis to the attack described by them as "a quality military operation deep in the United Arab Emirates".

The attack was aimed at two targets: the first, the Musafah industrial zone, near the seaport with oil facilities.

The attack burned three fuel tanks near warehouses of the national fuel company ADNOC.

The second - the area of ​​the international airport in Abu Dhabi, where a fire broke out at a construction site, and three foreign workers from India and Pakistan were killed and six were injured.

A Houthi spokesman, who claimed responsibility for the attack, warned: "This is just the beginning", and advised foreign companies operating in the Emirates to stay away from vital sites.

The oil facility in Abu Dhabi after the Houthi attack, Photo: Planet Labs PBC via AP

As is well known, the Houthi rebels are operating with the support of Iran.

It is not just a matter of political or financial backing, but of actual military assistance.

According to UN reports, Iran is training and arming the Houthis with advanced means, including the transfer of weapons and military equipment on ships.

The ships pass through the maritime space of Oman and Somalia, thence by small vessels to ports on the southern coast of Yemen, and by land to the Houthi regions.

Combined UAV and missile attacks in our region are hallmarks of Iran's involvement. In the past two years, further attacks have been carried out with these characteristics against targets in the Arabian Sea, against US bases in Iraq and southern Syria, battles in Yemen and other destinations. Of forces supported by her hands.

Building this capability with the forces loyal to it in the various regions, significantly upgrades their and its own attack capability vis-à-vis the various countries.

In addition, it allows Iran to determine in relation to each action the depth of its involvement and the degree of responsibility attributed to it, and accordingly to manage the risks regarding the price that may be charged from it.

The attack earlier this week is another illustration of this.

"The Houthis do not need assistance from Iran or any other country," Iranian officials told foreign media.

The latter have almost lamented Iran's reluctance for the next chapter in the ongoing conflict in Yemen.

As mentioned, the attack on the Emirates is another signal to the Americans.

It was the Biden administration that a little less than a year ago removed from the list of terrorist organizations the Ansar-Allah organization of the Houthis in Yemen.

His inclusion on this list was made in the last days of the Trump administration.

Since the move, even if not because of it, the Houthis have doubled the number of their attacks on targets in Saudi Arabia, and now they are attacking the Emirates as well.

Returning the Houthis to the terror list is a desirable step, but not enough.

Iran continues to operate as the head of a criminal organization, for which its soldiers do the undeclared work.

If they succeeded - the whole profit is his.

If they were hurt or lost - it does not concern him.

This is another event that illustrates to the world who is on the other side of the negotiating table. This is how Iran behaves when it is under the scrutiny of the international community, and when it is without the special status and bargaining power of a "threshold state".

The US-led international community needs to dismantle this equation.

The writer served as National Security Adviser and Chief of Staff for National Security in 2021-2017.

Currently serves as a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS)

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Source: israelhayom

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