Considering the national security threats emanating from Yemen and the humanitarian suffering there, resourcing these interdiction efforts is money well spent, write Ryan Brobst and Bradley Bowman.
The U.S. Navy announced on Tuesday that it has seized 70 tons of a missile fuel component and 100 tons of an explosive precursor. The items were being smuggled on a ship traveling from Iran to Yemen. This incident demonstrates that Iran continues to quite literally fuel the conflict in Yemen and the associated humanitarian crisis there. It underscores the need to ensure the U.S. and partner forces in the region have the capability necessary to interdict Iranian weapons smuggling.
Iranian support for the Houthis is not new. Tehran has armed the Houthis since at least 2009 and increased aid in 2015 after the Houthis overthrew the internationally recognized Yemeni government. That development prompted an intervention from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The warring parties reached a ceasefire earlier this year but failed to extend it in October. There have been continuing violations since then, spurring growing concerns that the ceasefire is slowly falling apart.
While the Houthis have used artillery and small arms and employed child soldiers, their preferred tactic for striking Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates has been with drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles. Since the war began, the Houthis have reportedly fired at least 550 drones and 350 ballistic missiles at Saudi Arabia and launched at least 375 cross-border attacks in 2021 alone.
Iran supplies the Houthis by smuggling weapons on dhows, although it also smuggles some supplies over land. This willingness to use a variety of routes mirrors Iran’s approach in arming Hezbollah in Lebanon. Tehran has sent weapons to Hezbollah over the Iraq-Syria land bridge and transports some by sea. Tehran’s use of maritime routes for smuggling helped inspire the establishment of multiple combined task forces in the region. The U.S.
Ryan Brobst is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, whereas Bradley Bowman is the senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power.
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