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** The Biden Administration Empowering Deadly Houthi Terror Group ([link removed])
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by Majid Rafizadeh • July 27, 2024 at 5:00 am
* [S]hortly after taking office, on February 12, 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken officially removed the Houthis' designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. This decision marked a significant shift in U.S. policy: it delisted a group that, according to a Yemeni government intelligence report, has close affiliations with Al Qaeda and ISIS, and, according to other reports, regularly commits crimes war crimes and crimes against humanity.
* The Biden administration's policy has involved releasing billions of dollars to the Iranian regime, and refraining from enforcing stringent sanctions against Iran. The influx of funds has doubtless enabled the Iranian regime to allocate substantial financial resources towards supporting and arming the Houthis as well as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Lebanon's Hezbollah.
* This flow of capital has not only sustained Iran's regional influence but is also prolonging the conflict in the region.
* The US Navy, thanks to the Houthis, has reportedly been facing "its most intense combat since World War II" and has reacted by destroying three "small boats" whose crews attempted to board a container ship in the Red Sea; a fourth boat "fled the scene."
* Responding to the Houthis was left to little Israel. Last week, its air force targeted Yemen's port city of Hodeida "in an attempt to prevent the ongoing delivery of weapons to the Houthi militia by Iran".
* Yet, not one senior US official – not US President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris nor Secretary of State Antony Blinken -- bothered to greet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, "The Churchill of the Middle East," at the airport when he landed this week in Washington, D.C. In an additional snub, Harris boycotted his speech to Congress.
* A former U.S. military official, speaking to CNN on the condition of anonymity, criticized the current approach, likening it to past unsuccessful efforts: "The US campaign against the Houthis appears to bear the hallmarks of many of these highly circumscribed, scrubbed campaigns of the past where we seek to avoid causing them actual pain."
* The administration... needs to redesignate the Houthis as a full-fledged "Foreign Terrorist Organization." In January, after pressure, the Houthis were ultimately named "Specially Designated Global Terrorists," a level below "Foreign Terrorist Organization", which enables them still to receive funding and enter the United States.
* Given the growing threat posed by these developments, and especially Iran's nuclear weapons program, it is imperative that the US take decisive steps to address the issue effectively before the situation further deteriorates into an even larger international crisis.

The US Navy, thanks to the Iran-backed Houthis of Yemen, has reportedly been facing "its most intense combat since World War II" and has reacted by destroying three "small boats" whose crews attempted to board a container ship in the Red Sea; a fourth boat "fled the scene." Responding to the Houthis was left to little Israel. Last week, its air force targeted Yemen's port city of Hodeidah "in an attempt to prevent the ongoing delivery of weapons to the Houthi militia by Iran". Pictured: Fires burn after an Israeli airstrike on an oil storage facility in the port city of Hodeidah, Yemen, on July 20, 2024. (Photo by Houthi Media Center via Getty Images)

Under the Biden Administration, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have effectively taken over the country, have significantly escalated their activities, culminating in a dramatic increase in their aggressive activities. They recently carried out an attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, resulting in one fatality and at least ten people injured. The assault marks the Houthis' first deadly strike into Israeli territory, reflecting a troubling widening of their actions.

The Houthis have also expanded their offensive operations to paralyze maritime traffic, with more than 60 attacks on ships navigating the Red Sea, and have issued explicit threats against vessels travelling to Israel, further heightening tensions in the region and forcing massive disruption in commercial maritime traffic. Ships, increasingly unable to acquire insurance, are now forced to detour around the continent of Africa.

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