Biden’s Yemen withdrawal will only embolden the terrorists
Originally published by the New York Post
All through the 2020 presidential campaign, both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris signaled their intention to end US support for the Saudi-led military effort against the Houthi terrorists attempting to install a radical, Iran-style theocracy on the kingdom’s southern border. On Thursday, President Biden, possibly in preparation for diplomatic engagement with Tehran, made the formal announcement that US engagement in Yemen is ending.
The president’s preemptive concession has little hope of success and considerable potential to make a bad situation worse.
On Jan. 23, just three days after Biden’s inauguration, the Houthi — who are supported and trained by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — launched a missile or drone toward Riyadh, which Saudi air defenses fortunately intercepted. The intent was clear: to indiscriminately target civilians (including Americans) and civilian infrastructure in or near the Saudi capital.
The attack was so brazen the Biden State Department was compelled to issue an official statement condemning it and pledging support for Saudi Arabia’s defense. Two weeks later, Biden continues to pay lip service to the kingdom’s defense, but apparently not at the cost of eradicating the source of the attacks — which is hardly going to deter the Houthi or their IRGC enablers.
This most recent Houthi attack on Saudi Arabia was a test of the new administration’s resolve, and Thursday’s announcement shows it is sorely lacking. The Houthi and the IRGC, both designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations by the Trump administration, will now be emboldened to attempt more sophisticated and far-reaching attacks against our friends and allies across the region, including Israel.
Biden’s withdrawal from Yemen may have been intended as an olive branch to Tehran in anticipation of renewed diplomatic engagement, but it is unlikely the Iranian regime will respond reasonably to any such outreach when it senses weakness from the United States.
The Yemen mission has never been popular for the simple reason that the Houthi, bolstered by the formidable Iranian propaganda machine, have successfully cast themselves in the court of public opinion as brave rebels battling Saudi imperialism. Those who unquestioningly accept this narrative fail to recognize the grim threat the Houthi pose to the stability of the entire Arabian peninsula, as well as to the vital shipping lane into the Red Sea through the Bab al-Mandeb strait.
Coates previously served as the Deputy National Security Advisor for the Middle East and North Africa on the National Security Council staff and the Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of Energy in the Donald J. Trump administration. She also served as the National Security Advisor in the office of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and as Director of Research for (former) Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s 2011 memoir, Known and Unknown.
Coates holds a B.A. from Trinity College, a M.A. from Williams College, and a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, all in art history. Coates is the author and presenter of dozens of publications and conference papers worldwide on the intersections of art and history, including David’s Sling: A History of Democracy in Ten Works of Art (Encounter Books, 2016) and the forthcoming Seeing the Light: A History of Christianity in Twelve Works of Art (under contract with Encounter Books), which are part of a projected trilogy on the key tenets of Western Civilization: democracy, the Judeo-Christian moral code, and the primacy of the individual.
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