by Seth J. Frantzman
The attack on Saudi Arabia on Saturday included video of an interception over the skies of Riyadh.
Iran is supporting its Houthi
rebel allies and proxy in Yemen to conduct an increasing war against
Saudi Arabia, the Saudi-led Coalition, and also against Yemen government
forces in Marib. Twenty four hours have seen an increased offensive
against Marib in Yemen, a reported ballistic missile attack on Saudi
Arabia on Saturday night and an attack on a ship in the Gulf of Oman. It
is part of a series of tensions across the region linking Iran to
conflicts in numerous places. This could be seen as a kind of “total
war” that Iran is pushing across the Middle East.
The
volume of attacks and the multi-layered nature of them illustrate that
this is not a mere happenstance or coincidence. This is not local
politics. This is a regional conflict and Iran, which has a foothold in
Yemen that has grown since 2015, is seeking to show that it can mobilize
on numerous levels through proxies and through its own actions, as well
as its advanced technology.
The
level of attacks in Yemen also must be paired with rocket attacks in
Saudi Arabia and also the airstrikes carried out by the Biden
administration over the weekend against Iranian-backed militias in
Syria. Add it up and what do you get: Incidents in Iraq, Syria, Saudi
Arabia and Yemen, spanning thousands of kilometers.
The
attack on Saudi Arabia on Saturday included video of an interception
over the skies of Riyadh. This is not the first time that rockets have
been fired on Riyadh. Houthis have fired missiles before that triggered
Patriot air defenses in Riyadh, in March 2020, in December 2017, in
March 2018. In November 2017 Defense News said that Patriots had
intercepted over 100 ballistic missiles since 2015 that were fired from
Yemen.
In
addition, a ship that departed Dammam on Wednesday was forced to turn
back after an explosion on Friday. It was in the Gulf of Oman. Israel’s
Channel 13 reported that the assessment is that the Iranian Navy fired
missiles at the MV Helios Ray in the Gulf of Oman. Up the coast, over
Kuwait, in Iraq the Iraqi members of Parliament that are supportive of
Iran and linked to the pro-Iranian Hashd al-Sha’abi have slammed the US
for airstrikes in Syria and complained about reports that Iraq provided
the US intelligence. The attack in Syria came after pro-Iranian militias
were accused of firing rockets at US forces in Erbil and Baghdad,
killing a contractor. In Nasiriyah pro-Iranian groups are accused of a
crackdown on protesters. Threat levels for US service members in Iraq
have also gone up, reports note.
In
Syria pro-Hezbollah sources have told Al-Manar TV that drones are
conducting surveillance of Iraqi militias. These are pro-Iranian
militias that are active near Albukamal, the same area the US carried
out airstrikes. The US says that airstrikes hit areas used by
Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah.
Then
in Marib in Yemen, the Iranian-backed Houthis are trying to take Marib
city, where there are many displaced Yemenis who fled the fighting. The
Houthis were briefly designated terrorists by the Trump administration,
before the Biden administration reversed course. They are waging a civil
war against the government, which is backed by Riyadh. Saudi Arabia led
an intervention in Yemen in 2015. A bi-partisan group of US Senators
called on the Houthis to stop the offensive on February 26. “The Houthis
and their supporters in the Iranian government must stop the offensive
on Marib and avoid needless death and worsening the humanitarian
catastrophe. All parties should agree to a nationwide ceasefire and
begin inclusive political negotiations to end the war.”
Iran’s
state media tells the story openly of Iran’s total war in the region.
“Iraqi resistance groups urge probe into deadly US airstrike,” says
Press TV. “Ma'rib liberation accelerates as Yemeni tribes abandon Saudi
coalition”; “Owner of damaged Israeli ship close to Mossad chief:
Reports”; “Iraqi FM in Iran for 2nd official visit in a month”; “China
plans robust hike in military budget as US rivalry intensifies”; “‘Bad
sign from Biden admin.’: Syria slams fatal US raid on Iraq border”;
“Iran condemns 'illegal' US airstrikes on eastern Syria.”
It’s
clear that Iran is seeking maximum pressure across the region on the US
and US partners and allies from Israel to Saudi Arabia. The tentacles
are also long, stretching from Yemen via the Gulf of Oman to Iraq, Syria
and then Lebanon. Iran is also using a plethora of technology it has
developed to support its proxies, from 107mm rockets in Iraq, to bases
in Syria, as well as ballistic missiles (SRBMs) in Yemen and mines and
missiles in the Gulf of Oman. ...
Seth J. Frantzman
Source: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/twenty-four-hours-of-irans-total-war-in-yemen-iraq-and-syria-660424
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