Iran Wins With US Airstrikes on Houthis in Yemen
The response to attacks in the Red Sea was inevitable, but it’s still unlikely to achieve US goals.
Houthi fighters brandish their weapons during a march in solidarity with the Palestinian people in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa on January 11, 2024.
Photographer: MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFPThere are at least two views you can take on the US decision, joined by Britain, to strike Houthi targets in Yemen early Friday. Although they are entirely contradictory, both would be correct.
The first is that this was inevitable. Both politically and to retain credible deterrence against further hostile actions by Iran and its proxies, doing nothing was simply not an option for President Joe Biden. The second view, and doubtless the reason he had first hesitated, is that there is little likelihood of success and a measurable risk of escalation.