US, UK attacks on Ansar Allah were expected to have minimal impact

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Bloomberg
19 Jan 2024 18:41
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Detractors contend that individuals who have closely monitored Ansar Allah's persistent resistance to years of Saudi-led aggression should have foreseen the limited impact of the US and UK attacks on the group.

A satellite picture shows the aftermath of an airstrike on a radar site near Sanaa International Airport in Yemen on Friday. (MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES / VIA AFP-JIJI)

The return of the US military to the Middle East is encountering challenges, as the US-led airstrikes against Yemen have proven ineffective in curbing the group's operations, Bloomberg's Karl Maier highlighted in his piece.

"The US military is back in the Middle East. It’s not going very well."

This situation underscored the complexities and difficulties faced in addressing security issues in the region. It also emphasized the ongoing struggle to maintain stability in maritime activities amid heightened tensions in the Red Sea, as per Maier.

The analysis underscored the need for a comprehensive and strategic approach to contend with the evolving challenges posed by Ansar Allah operations in the area.

Maier underscored, "If anything, the situation has got worse."

'US’ own damaged foreign policy' in West Asia

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has outrightly rejected President Biden's proposals for an eventual Palestinian state as a means to establish "lasting peace in the region."

When Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed the World Economic Forum, stating that he received indications from nearly all nations expressing a desire for US participation and presence at international discussions, what stood out to many observers was the perceived lack of influence or control exhibited by the United States.

Maier further stressed that a "postwar Gaza plan" supported by five Arab nations and endorsed by Washington is unlikely to succeed due to the refusal of Netanyahu, who leads the most right-wing government in "Israel's" history, to accept it.

Ansar Allah has made public declarations, vowing to persist with their attacks until aid is allowed into Gaza and the Israeli occupation forces cease the military hostilities in Gaza.

Critics argue that those who have been tracking Ansar Allah's resilient resistance against years of Saudi military airstrikes should have anticipated that the US and UK attacks on the group would have minimal impact, he further concurred.

In Biden's domestic front, where he contends with a challenging reelection campaign, there is a consensus among both Democratic and Republican lawmakers in support of the administration's pro-"Israel" stance. However, public opinion polls reveal significant disapproval of Biden's management of the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza, particularly among younger voters.

"By the time Blinken left Davos, and his plane broke on the runway, one observer at the gathering of global elite quipped that it might as well be a metaphor for the US’s own damaged foreign policy in the region," Maier concluded.