US President Donald Trump announced today (Monday) that from now on, every shot fired by the Houthi rebels in Yemen will be considered a shot fired by Iran.
"Let nobody be fooled! The hundreds of attacks being made by Houthi, the sinister mobsters and thugs based in Yemen, who are hated by the Yemeni people, all emanate from, and are created by, IRAN. Any further attack or retaliation by the 'Houthis' will be met with great force, and there is no guarantee that that force will stop there," Trump wrote on his Truth Social program.
"Iran has played 'the innocent victim' of rogue terrorists from which they’ve lost control, but they haven’t lost control. They’re dictating every move, giving them the weapons, supplying them with money and highly sophisticated Military equipment, and even, so-called, 'Intelligence.' Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!" he said.
On Saturday, the US announced the launch of a military operation against the Houthis in Yemen. The attacks struck air defense systems, missile arsenals, and drones, with the aim of opening and protecting the shipping lanes in the Red Sea.
Trump stated on Saturday, "Today, I have ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen. They have waged an unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence, and terrorism against American, and other, ships, aircraft, and drones."
"Joe Biden’s response was pathetically weak, so the unrestrained Houthis just kept going. It has been over a year since a US-flagged commercial ship safely sailed through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, or the Gulf of Aden. The last American warship to go through the Red Sea, four months ago, was attacked by the Houthis over a dozen times. Funded by Iran, the Houthi thugs have fired missiles at US aircraft, and targeted our troops and allies. These relentless assaults have cost the US and world economy many BILLIONS of dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk.
"The Houthi attack on American vessels will not be tolerated. We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective. The Houthis have choked off shipping in one of the most important waterways of the world, grinding vast swaths of global commerce to a halt, and attacking the core principle of freedom of navigation upon which international trade and commerce depends.
"Our brave warfighters are right now carrying out aerial attacks on the terrorists’ bases, leaders, and missile defenses to protect American shipping, air, and naval assets, and to restore navigational freedom. No terrorist force will stop American commercial and naval vessels from freely sailing the waterways of the world.
"To all Houthi terrorists, your time is up, and your attacks must stop, starting today. If they don't, hell will rain down upon you like nothing you have ever seen before!
"To Iran: Support for the Houthi terrorists must end IMMEDIATELY! Do NOT threaten the American people, their President, who has received one of the largest mandates in presidential history, or worldwide shipping lanes. If you do, BEWARE, because America will hold you fully accountable and, we won’t be nice about it!"
