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Iran begins annual war games ahead of nuke talks with West
State TV says Iran’s military has begun its annual war games in a coastal area of the Gulf of Oman, less than a month before upcoming nuclear talks with the West
By The Associated Press
7 November 2021, 00:55

WireAP_4f3ac99f3315423f80badbcdaa93992c_16x9_992.jpg


TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran’s military began its annual war games in a coastal area of the Gulf of Oman, state TV reported Sunday, less than a month before upcoming nuclear talks with the West.

The report said navy and air force units as well as ground forces were participating in a more than 1 million square-kilometer (386,100 square-mile) area east of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Nearly 20% of all oil shipping passes through the strait to the Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean.

The drill comes amid heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. in the wake of former President Donald Trump’s unilateral withdrawal of America from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

State TV said brigades including commandos and airborne infantry deployed for the annual exercise. Fighter jets, helicopters, military transport aircraft, submarines and drones were also expected to take part in the drill. It wasn't immediately clear how long the exercise would last.

Dubbed “Zolfaghar-1400,” the war games are aimed at “improving readiness in confronting foreign threats and any possible invasion," state TV said.

U.S. officials said last week that Iran had seized a Vietnamese-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman last month and was still holding the vessel in its port.

Iran offered conflicting accounts of what happened, claiming that elite Revolutionary Guard commandos had thwarted a U.S. seizure of a tanker carrying Iranian oil in the Gulf of Oman and freed the vessel. It aired dramatic footage on state television but did not further explain the incident.

The nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, promises Iran economic incentives in exchange for limits on its nuclear program, and is meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear bomb.

After the U.S. withdrew from the deal in 2018 and restored sanctions on Iran, the Islamic Republic gradually — and publicly — abandoned the deal’s limits on its nuclear development.

Iran says its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium has reached over 210 kilograms (463 pounds), the latest defiant move ahead of upcoming nuclear talks with the West.

Under the historic nuclear deal, Iran was prohibited from enriching uranium above 3.67%. Enriched uranium above 90% can be used for nuclear weapons, though Tehran insists its nuclear program is peaceful.

After months of delays, the European Union, Iran and the U.S. announced last week that indirect talks to resuscitate the deal would resume Nov. 29 in Vienna.

Iran begins annual war games ahead of nuke talks with West - ABC News (go.com)
 
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19fortyfive.com

Africa: The Next Target on Iran’s Power Politics Bucket List?
ByDanny Citrinowicz and Jason M. Brodsky Published 28 mins ago

7-8 minutes


For those who follow Iran’s activity in Africa, the information coming from Addis Ababa regarding the possible use of Iranian drones amid Ethiopia’s new military campaign against the Tigray is not surprising. According to some reports in October, as many as 50 cargo flights bearing arms have landed in Ethiopia from the United Arab Emirates and Iran over a period of two months. The US Treasury Department confirmed recently that Iran’s Quds Force has been proliferating such drones for use in Ethiopia.

Historically, Iran’s bid for influence on the African continent since the 1979 Islamic Revolution has been an uphill struggle as Tehran had no significant historical footprint in Africa due to the predominance of Sunni and Sufi forms of Islam among African Muslims. Nevertheless, Iran has created an infrastructure of mosques, cultural centers, charitable networks, and educational institutions which have served to spread its revolutionary ethos to Africa.
Africa has been designated as one of the main targets for Tehran as it looks to expand its influence beyond the Middle East. The presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005-13) was a turning point in Iran’s engagement on the continent, as Tehran deepened its ties with African countries, particularly sub-Saharan ones. But African countries, due to pressure from the West, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, demonstrated a strong disinclination to expand their strategic ties with Iran. This illustrates the gap between Africa’s real potential for Iran and what Tehran envisions.

Ebrahim Raisi’s ascendance as president indicates that the Iranian establishment is seeking to refresh the Africa playbook it adopted under the Ahmadinejad administration. Unlike President Hassan Rouhani whose administration sought to use the Iran nuclear deal as the centerpiece of efforts to deepen ties with the West, Raisi, along with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), are likely to focus more time on exporting the Islamic Revolution in Africa. Moreover, Iran’s new Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian used to serve as the deputy foreign minister for Arab and African Affairs, and he is, as his president, eager to promote these relations.
On top of that dynamic, the Iranian system may look to Africa as a place to achieve its strategic goals—particularly the implementation of a resistance economy to neutralize sanctions—and signal to the international and particularly domestic audiences that it has alternatives. This is connected to Tehran’s own pivot to Asia, as the regime will try to minimize any Iranian dependence on the West.
As in the Ethiopian case, Iran is expected to increase its arms sales to Africa, especially after the expiration of the arms embargo under UN Security Council Resolution 2231. It will use such practices as a platform to expand its influence on the continent. Ethiopia is probably not the only country that is an export market for the Iranian military industry—Iranian arms have been spotted in Somalia as well. Iran is also likely to increase the number of high-ranking officials visiting Africa and will try to promote economic projects to further bypass sanctions imposed by the United States. It is also possible that both Tehran and Beijing will work together to minimize US influence in Africa.

Iran’s pivot to Africa is not just economic in nature. Tehran sees the continent as a launchpad for targeting US and Israeli interests. Increased Iranian operations in Africa started after the death of former IRGC Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani. In January 2020, the head of US Africa Command told Congress that intelligence reports indicated Iran was planning attacks on Americans in Africa to avenge Soleimani’s demise. This threat burst into the public spotlight in September 2020, with news that Iran was weighing a plot to assassinate the then US ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks. Indeed, as of April 2021, US Africa Command warned that “Iran is increasingly active on the continent.”
Earlier this year came news that Ethiopia’s intelligence agency had thwarted an Iranian terrorist cell casing the embassy of the United Arab Emirates there, having “activated a sleeper cell in Addis Ababa last fall with orders to gather intelligence also on the embassies of the United States and Israel,” according to The New York Times. Another cohort was seeking to target the Emirati embassy in Sudan. The Economist last year also reported, citing a western intelligence source, that police in Niger arrested an operative who admitted working for the IRGC’s Quds Force Unit 400, having been recruited during a pilgrimage to Iran, where he also received arms training. He built networks in the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Eritrea, Gambia, Sudan, and South Sudan, and coupled this activity with attempts to “seek mining licenses in the CAR and Niger to help offset the impact of American sanctions on Iran and to fund covert operations,” according to The Economist. Tehran may seek to employ this modus operandi—of arms exports and sanctions neutralization coupled with terror—more aggressively in the coming years.

Thus, the Iranian leadership, especially with the elevation of Ebrahim Raisi as president, will seek to increase its footprint in Africa—through economic and military partnerships, and with plots to attack US interests. This is part of the new policy being implemented by the Raisi administration, especially as the Iranian system seeks to pivot to non-western countries. In the eyes of Tehran, this approach is an important tool in the Iranian toolkit aiming to counter western dominance using an African strategic depth.
Iran will probably duplicate the way it works in the Middle East in Africa. Meaning, it will work with local forces and use them as proxies or partners to promote Iranian interests, like the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) or the Polisario in Western Sahara. There is also a possibility that Iran will try to prevent other countries in Africa from improving their relations with Israel, by arming and funding insurgent movements.
It will be imperative for the United States to work closely with its partners in Africa to block any Iranian attempt to fulfill its interests and severely punish those countries cooperating with Tehran. Expanding the Abraham Accords to include more countries in Africa—aside from Morocco and Sudan—like Niger will be important in this regard. By doing so, the Biden administration and Israel can work together to thwart Iranian influence on the continent.

Danny Citrinowicz is a senior research fellow at the Abba Eban Institute for International Diplomacy in Israel and served for 25 years in a variety of command position units in Israel Defense Intelligence (IDI). Jason M. Brodsky is policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI).

www.19fortyfive.com

Africa: The Next Target on Iran’s Power Politics Bucket List?

Africa has been designated as one of the main targets for Iran as it looks to expand its influence beyond the Middle East
www.19fortyfive.com www.19fortyfive.com
 
jward

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I meant to say that I thought we were already well into "completely gone to crap" territory, then the ghost of ww3 future unveiled his ball for me- - -
These are just the last o' the good ole days, eh? We're I not so tired, I'd run about with the bic engaged, chiding my naivety for once thinking it interesting to have a front row center seat for history-in-the-making.

Housecarl said:
This is on the cusp of going completely to crap....
Click to expand...
 
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ason Brodsky
@JasonMBrodsky

#BREAKING: "Two regional officials who spoke on condition of anonymity said Tehran had knowledge about the attack before it was carried out, but that Iranian authorities had not ordered it."
Important: "#Iran did not plan it but Tehran also did not stop the group from carrying it out," one of the officials said, declining to name which group he was referring to."
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1457725883494588418
View: https://twitter.com/JasonMBrodsky/status/1457725883494588418?s=20
 
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Overnight Defense & National Security — More tensions with Iran

© Getty

It's Tuesday, welcome to Overnight Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Subscribe here: thehill.com/newsletter-signup.
The United States and Iran once again are giving conflicting accounts of a confrontation between the two in international waters, an occurrence that has happened several times in the past month.
We’ll share details of what happened and what both sides are claiming, plus recent Chinese military moves and the Biden administration effort to transport U.S.-trained Afghan pilots from Tajikistan.
For The Hill, I’m Ellen Mitchell. Write to me with tips: emitchell@thehill.com.
Let’s get to it.

Iran said it warned off US drones, Washington disagrees
us_reaper_drone_afghanistan_012318getty_drones.jpg

Iran on Tuesday said its military warned off U.S. drones it says approached during the country’s annual war games exercises.
"These aircraft [RQ-4 and MQ-9 U.S. drones] changed their route after approaching the borders of the Islamic Republic of Iran following the air defence's interception and decisive warning," state media IRIB reported, according to Reuters.
Timing: The incident came as Iran was conducting its annual war games in parts of the Red Sea, north of the Indian Ocean and east of the Strait of Hormuz.
It also comes weeks before Iran and the U.S. are set to resume talks to reenter the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal.

The Pentagon’s response: “We are familiar with false reports emanating from Iranian state media as of late. Again, we are not seeing operation reports that suggest the Iranian military has prevented U.S. forces from fulfilling its objectives in the region,” U.S. Army Maj. John Rigsbee, a spokesperson for Centcom, said in a statement to The Hill.
Earlier: Iran's military last week claimed that it stopped an attempt by the U.S. Navy to detain a tanker carrying Iranian oil in the Sea of Oman on Oct. 24, an accusation the U.S. military called "totally false."
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby at the time pushed back on the assertion and said it was Iran that was the aggressor when its forces "illegally” boarded and seized a merchant vessel in international waters in the Gulf of Oman.
"I’ve seen the claims, they are absolutely, totally false and untrue," Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. "There was no such effort by U.S. naval assets to seize anything."

Increasing incidents: Asked Tuesday about the latest confrontation, Kirby said he could not confirm or speak to the timing and the frequency of such incidents but said the U.S. military is “focused on the threat.”
Read the full story here.
thehill.com

Overnight Defense & National Security — More tensions with Iran

It’s Tuesday, welcome to Overnight Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Subscribe here: thehill.com/news…
thehill.com thehill.com
 
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Israel Radar
@IsraelRadar_com
5h

#Iranian general threatens to destroy #Israel if it starts a war; IRGC aerospace chief Hajizadeh warns that Israel is "doomed" in a Tehran speech. The escalating threats suggest that Iran is seeing indications of impending military moves by Israel.

#Israel and US step up military cooperation: American, Israeli, UAE and Bahraini naval forces launch joint drill in Red Sea; exercise focused on protection of sea lanes, troops to practice search & seizure operations, according to US Central Command
 
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National Security
Iran-Backed Militants Storm US Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment

State Department 'concerned about the breach of the compound,' demands release of hostages

rsz_1gettyimages-1225247122-736x514.jpg

Houthi fighters / Getty Images Adam Kredo • November 11, 2021 10:40 am


The State Department is working to secure the release of several hostages taken by Iran-backed terrorists after they stormed the U.S. embassy facility in Sana'a, Yemen, U.S. officials told the Washington Free Beacon early Thursday.

A group of Houthi rebels reportedly stormed the U.S. compound on Wednesday seeking "large quantities of equipment and materials," according to regional reports translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute. The raid comes just five days after the Houthis kidnapped Yemeni nationals who work for the U.S. embassy.
The State Department confirmed to the Free Beacon that the Yemeni staffers are being held hostage and that the Iran-backed militants stole property after breaching the American facility in Sana'a, which housed U.S. embassy staff prior to the suspension of operations there in 2015.

"The United States has been unceasing in its diplomatic efforts to secure their release," a State Department spokesman told the Free Beacon. "The majority of the detained have been released, but the Houthis continue to detain additional Yemeni employees of the embassy."
Those still being held hostage are "detained without explanation and we call for their immediate release," the State Department spokesman said.
The United States is also "concerned about the breach of the compound" and is calling "on the Houthis to immediately vacate it and return all seized property."

The Biden administration "will continue its diplomatic efforts to secure the release of our staff and the vacating of our compound, including through our international partners," the State Department said.
The hostage situation is likely to further inflame tensions between the United States and Iran, which arms and funds the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Trump administration designated the Houthis as a terrorist organization, but that designation was removed when the Biden administration took office—a move that was seen as a goodwill gesture to coax Iran into diplomatic negotiations aimed at securing a revamped version of the 2015 nuclear accord.


Published under: State Department, Yemen

Iran-Backed Militants Storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment
 
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Housecarl

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jward said:
National Security
Iran-Backed Militants Storm US Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment

State Department 'concerned about the breach of the compound,' demands release of hostages

rsz_1gettyimages-1225247122-736x514.jpg

Houthi fighters / Getty Images Adam Kredo • November 11, 2021 10:40 am


The State Department is working to secure the release of several hostages taken by Iran-backed terrorists after they stormed the U.S. embassy facility in Sana'a, Yemen, U.S. officials told the Washington Free Beacon early Thursday.

A group of Houthi rebels reportedly stormed the U.S. compound on Wednesday seeking "large quantities of equipment and materials," according to regional reports translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute. The raid comes just five days after the Houthis kidnapped Yemeni nationals who work for the U.S. embassy.
The State Department confirmed to the Free Beacon that the Yemeni staffers are being held hostage and that the Iran-backed militants stole property after breaching the American facility in Sana'a, which housed U.S. embassy staff prior to the suspension of operations there in 2015.

"The United States has been unceasing in its diplomatic efforts to secure their release," a State Department spokesman told the Free Beacon. "The majority of the detained have been released, but the Houthis continue to detain additional Yemeni employees of the embassy."
Those still being held hostage are "detained without explanation and we call for their immediate release," the State Department spokesman said.
The United States is also "concerned about the breach of the compound" and is calling "on the Houthis to immediately vacate it and return all seized property."

The Biden administration "will continue its diplomatic efforts to secure the release of our staff and the vacating of our compound, including through our international partners," the State Department said.
The hostage situation is likely to further inflame tensions between the United States and Iran, which arms and funds the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Trump administration designated the Houthis as a terrorist organization, but that designation was removed when the Biden administration took office—a move that was seen as a goodwill gesture to coax Iran into diplomatic negotiations aimed at securing a revamped version of the 2015 nuclear accord.


Published under: State Department, Yemen

Iran-Backed Militants Storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment
Click to expand...

Nothing about this on the top of the hour radio news....the longer it gets sat upon the worse it will sound when it does air.....
 
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Housecarl

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Posted for fair use.....
www.reuters.com

Analysis: Wielding fresh leverage, Iran to play hardball at nuclear talks

Iran will adopt an uncompromising stance when it resumes nuclear talks with major powers, betting it has the leverage to win wide sanctions relief in return for curbs on its increasingly advanced atomic technology, officials and analysts say.
www.reuters.com www.reuters.com

November 11, 20214:38 AM PST
Last Updated 10 hours ago
China
Analysis: Wielding fresh leverage, Iran to play hardball at nuclear talks
By Parisa Hafezi and John Irish, Arshad Mohammed

  • Summary

  • Failure at talks could raise risk of conflict
  • Iran to use new enrichment clout to seek concessions
  • Tehran breached nuclear limits after Trump quit deal
  • Iran denies ever seeking nuclear weapons
  • Sanctions devastate Iran's oil reliant economy
DUBAI, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Iran will adopt an uncompromising stance when it resumes nuclear talks with major powers, betting it has the leverage to win wide sanctions relief in return for curbs on its increasingly advanced atomic technology, officials and analysts say.

The stakes are high, since failure in the negotiations resuming in Vienna on Nov. 29 to revive a 2015 nuclear deal would carry the risk of a fresh regional war.


Iran's arch foe Israel has pushed for a tough policy if diplomacy fails to rein in Iran's nuclear work, long seen by the West as a cover for developing atomic bombs.

Tehran denies it has ever sought to develop nuclear weapons and says it is prepared for war in defence of its atomic programme.


Iranian hardliners believe that a tough approach, spearheaded by their strongly anti-Western Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, can force Washington to accept Tehran's "maximalist demands", the officials and analysts said.

"Our nuclear facilities are up and running ... We can live with or without the deal... The ball is in their court," said a hardline Iranian official who asked not to be named.


"Progress means lifting all those cruel sanctions ... Iran has never abandoned the deal. America did."

Iran began breaching nuclear restrictions under the pact in response to a decision in 2018 by then U.S. President Donald Trump to withdraw from the agreement and reimpose harsh sanctions that have devastated Iran's economy.


In an apparent bid to pressure Trump's successor Joe Biden to lift sanctions, Iran accelerated those breaches by rebuilding enriched uranium stocks, refining it to a higher fissile purity and installing advanced centrifuges to speed up production.

Dramatically upping the ante, Iran has also limited access given to U.N. nuclear watchdog inspectors under the nuclear deal, restricting their visits to declared nuclear sites only.


Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian tweeted that Tehran was ready "to deliver a good agreement", but some Western diplomats said a deal hinged on Tehran's readiness to show flexibility when the talks resume.

Failure to agree by early 2022, they said, would make the pact's revival less likely due to a key technicality - the longer Iran remains outside the deal, they said, the more nuclear expertise it will gain, shortening the time it might need to race to build a bomb if it chose to.


Kasra Aarabi, senior Iran analyst at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, said by using delays in the talks, advancing its atomic expertise and continuing to support paramilitary allies in the region, Khamenei and his hardline allies were "genuinely convinced they can intimidate the U.S. into granting more concessions without facing any consequences".

FAILURE OR SUCCESS


The fact that indirect talks between Tehran and Washington paused after the June election of hardline President Ebrahim Raisi signalled that the likelihood of failure was greater than chances of success of the negotiations, two Iranian sources close to the country's power centre told Reuters.

Ali Vaez, senior Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the negotiations were bound to fail "if Iran's opening salvo is indeed its bottom line".


"By insisting on its maximalist demands, Iran is likely to get neither sanctions relief nor the guarantees it is seeking."

With differences between Tehran and Washington still vast after six rounds of indirect talks on some key issues - such as the speed and scope of lifting sanctions and how and when Iran will reverse its nuclear steps - chances of a deal seem remote.


Iran insists on immediate removal of all Trump-era sanctions in a verifiable process. Washington has said it would remove curbs "inconsistent with the 2015 nuclear pact" if Iran resumed compliance with the deal, implying it would leave in place others such as those imposed under terrorism or human rights measures.

Tehran also seeks guarantees that "no U.S. administration" will renege on the pact again. But Biden cannot promise this because the nuclear deal is a non-binding political understanding, not a legally-binding treaty.


The pact, negotiated under former U.S. President Barrack Obama, was not a treaty because there was no way the Democratic president could have secured the approval of the U.S. Senate.

'NOT WORTH PURSUING'

Things are not much better for Biden.

Under the U.S. Constitution, treaties require the consent of two-thirds of the 100-member Senate. Given that it is now split between 50 of Biden's fellow Democrats and 50 Republicans, there is no plausible way for Biden to meet that threshold.

Many Republican senators detest the nuclear agreement and even some Democrats oppose it. However, Rob Malley, the U.S. special envoy for Iran, said last month :"Our intent is to be faithful to the deal if we could get back in."

Eurasia Group analyst Henry Rome said many hardliners in Iran were convinced that, since the deal has failed once, "it's not worth pursuing unless it's fundamentally altered".

Despite U.S. sanctions, China has provided a financial lifeline to Iran by importing supplies of Iranian oil that have held above half a million barrels per day on average for the last three months.

Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by William Maclean and Alex Richardson
 
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Housecarl

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news.yahoo.com

Iran-backed Houthi rebels detain Yemeni U.S. Embassy staff after breaching compound in Sanaa

The State Department on Thursday called on Iran-backed Houthi rebels to release Yemeni U.S. Embassy staff the fighters detained in the northern city of Sanaa after breaching the compound in the war-ravaged country.Details: A State Department spokesperson in an emailed statement also called on...
news.yahoo.com news.yahoo.com

Iran-backed Houthi rebels detain Yemeni U.S. Embassy staff after breaching compound in Sanaa

Rebecca Falconer
Thu, November 11, 2021, 8:54 PM · 1 min read

The State Department on Thursday called on Iran-backed Houthi rebels to release Yemeni U.S. Embassy staff the fighters detained in the northern city of Sanaa after breaching the compound in the war-ravaged country.

Details: A State Department spokesperson in an emailed statement also called on the Houthis to "immediately vacate" the complex and "return all seized property." Most of those detained, who worked outside of the compound on duties including security, had been released, the spokesperson said.
 
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Housecarl

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www.latinpost.com

Houthi Rebels Breached U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Took Hostages; U.S. Calls for Release of the Detained

The United States government has called on Houthi rebels to release the hostages who worked for the U.S. embassy in Yemen after the group stormed inside the building.
www.latinpost.com www.latinpost.com

Houthi Rebels Breached U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Took Hostages; U.S. Calls for Release of the Detained

By Mary Webber First Posted: Nov 11, 2021 09:37 PM EST

The United States government has called on Houthi rebels to release the hostages who worked for the U.S. embassy in Yemen after the group stormed inside the building.

The spokesperson said that most of the detainees had been released. However, the rebels continue to hold Yemeni employees of the embassy, according to an Aljazeera report.

The official said that they are concerned that the Yemeni staff of the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa continue to be detained without explanation, urging the Houthis to leave the compound immediately and return all seized property.

Houthi rebels reportedly took the building on Wednesday. They were demanding "large quantities of equipment and materials," according to a National Review report.

U.S. President Joe Biden removed the foreign-terrorist organization designation within a month of taking office that was placed on the Houthis by the Trump administration.

The terrorist designation had cut the Houthis off from financial support and other material resources from U.S. banks or other American institutions.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the decision an acknowledgment of the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen.

Biden also announced the cessation of all American support for offensive operations in the Yemeni war, including arms sales.

The United States had earlier supported the Yemeni government.

READ NEXT: Pentagon Official Says ISIS-K Can Launch Attack Outside Afghanistan in Just Six Months; U.S. Included in Possible Targets

Crisis and War in Yemen
The crisis had occurred in late 2014 when the Houthis had seized large portions of the country, including its capital Sanaa. It then escalated when the group had tried to control the entire country, which forced the country's president Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi to flee the country in March 2015, according to a BBC News report.

The eight other mostly Sunni Arab states started an air campaign targeted at defeating the Houthi's reign.

The conflict was rooted in a failure of a political process to bring stability to Yemen. Its authoritarian president Ali Abdullah Saleh had handed over power to his deputy, Hadi.

Hadi had faced several problems, such as unemployment and food insecurity, which were taken advantage of by the Houthi movement.

The Houthis went on the offensive in Marib this year, which is the government's last stronghold in the north.

Marib is also the capital of an oil-rich province.

The United Nations called for a ceasefire, issuing a warning that an all-out battle for the provincial capital could put two million civilians at risk and cause huge displacement.

The Houthis went on with their missile and drone attacks in Saudi Arabia, which often affect civilian infrastructure.

Saudi and U.S. officials have accused Iran of smuggling parts for the weapons, including arms like rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

However, Iran has denied the allegations against them.

The United Nations noted that the U.S. closed its Yemen embassy in 2015 amid a violent civil war that has since caused the greatest humanitarian crisis in the world, according to a Fox News report.

However, some Yemeni staff continued to work from home or as security guards at the embassy.

READ MORE: 2 Afghan Refugees Staying in Wisconsin Arrested for Trying to Rape Child, Strangle Woman

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Houthi rebels claim Saudi Arabia missile attack, warn of more | Riyadh | Latest English News - from WION

View: https://youtu.be/JuxkhslpYIM
 
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Housecarl

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Hummm.....

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www.eurasiareview.com

Biden Should Reject US Return To Iran Nuclear Deal – OpEd

By Dalia Al-Aqidi * Iran has been dominating the news over the past month. It all started with the recent conflict between Lebanon and the Gulf states over controversial televised comments made by Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi. Even though Kordahi’s remarks were made a month...
www.eurasiareview.com www.eurasiareview.com

Biden Should Reject US Return To Iran Nuclear Deal – OpEd
November 12, 2021 Arab News 0 Comments
By Arab News



By Dalia Al-Aqidi *
Iran has been dominating the news over the past month. It all started with the recent conflict between Lebanon and the Gulf states over controversial televised comments made by Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi. Even though Kordahi’s remarks were made a month before he became a member of a Christian party allied to Hezbollah, the Gulf countries are fed up dealing with a nation controlled by an Iranian proxy.

In Iraq, Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi on Sunday survived an assassination attempt made using Iranian-made drones while he was at his residence in Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone. The attack followed direct threats made by pro-Iran Shiite militia leader Qais Al-Khazali of the Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq group, which is designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the US.

Meanwhile, debates on whether the Biden administration should revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran nuclear deal, continue in Washington.

Members of the Republican Party have accused President Joe Biden of ignoring the hostile attitude of the Iranian regime toward the US and its allies abroad in order to fulfill his campaign promise of returning to the JCPOA.

A US garrison at Al-Tanf in Syria was last month attacked by a drone, while an Israeli-managed commercial oil tanker was targeted in the Gulf of Oman in July. Tehran has been accused of being behind both attacks.

Seventeen Republican lawmakers last week sent a letter to the White House urging the president to desist from continuing diplomatic talks with Tehran and not to reward Iran for its violent behavior. They said Biden was sending a dangerous message to America’s friends and adversaries alike that Washington is willing to lift sanctions and negotiate with the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism as it attacks their country, in reference to the Al-Tanf attack.

“This attack is yet another reminder that your administration is setting the wrong priorities by working to re-enter the Iran nuclear deal. If Iran is willing to engage in this kind of behavior while negotiations are still ongoing, imagine the respect they will have for any agreement once the ink is dry,” the letter read. It added that the administration continues to weaken America’s ability to combat the Iranian regime by lifting sanctions.

The Vienna talks are set to resume on Nov. 29 after a five-month break, during which new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi took office. How strongly he desires a deal remains to be seen, but Tehran will continue pursuing its nuclear efforts in the meantime.

Kelsey Davenport, the director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association, emphasized that Washington should not reward Iran for continuing to violate the nuclear deal, warning of sending Tehran the wrong signal. “The Biden administration has to walk a fine line between demonstrating to Iran that Tehran will benefit from sanctions relief if the deal is restored, while not giving in to Iranian leverage,” she said.

While Tehran seeks the lifting of all sanctions, this month’s decision by the US Treasury Department to impose sanctions on two Iranian entities and four individuals makes it clear that this option will not be available, which should push Iran to soften its language. Would it consider that? Absolutely not.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian criticized the US decision on Twitter, writing: “The White House calls for negotiations with Iran and claims to be ready to return to the JCPOA. Yet it simultaneously imposes new sanctions on Iranian individuals and entities. The purpose of negotiations is not talking for the sake of talking, but to achieve tangible results on the basis of respect for mutual interests.”

So how should the Biden administration deal with the Iranian nuclear file? With the support of the Republicans, the president should abandon his campaign promise to revive the deal and explain the decision to his base by highlighting all the Iranian atrocities against the US, its allies and the millions of innocent people around the world, while tightening the sanctions on the Tehran government.

Learning from Iraq, forced government change from outside will not benefit either country. However, the US supporting regime change would give the Iranian opposition inside the country motivation for demonstrations and civil disobedience. It almost happened in 2009 and it could happen again in 2021.

Biden needs to find the courage to take a stand against the people that are pushing him to sign a new deal with Iran.

*Dalia Al-Aqidi is a senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy. Twitter: @DaliaAlAqidi
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Please see source for rest of article. Embasy was shut down in '15 and diplomatic affairs have been conducted out of Saudia Arabia. These folk are "just" local staff and support services iiuc.

Iran-backed Houthi Rebels stormed US embassy in Yemen and seized at least 25 Yemeni staff hostages and files: State Department demands release of staff
  • Iran-backed Houthi fighters kidnapped at least 25 people linked to the United States embassy in Yemen, according to local reports from the region
  • The State Department told DailyMail.com that a majority have been set free but that the US 'has been unceasing in its diplomatic efforts' to rescue the rest
  • Houthi rebels took 'large quantities of equipment' from the embassy in Sana'a
  • The compound was shut down in 2015 over security concerns but it appears that Yemeni security forces were still on the ground guarding it
  • Since then fighting has continued into its seventh year, killing thousands

www.dailymail.co.uk

Iran-backed militants storm US embassy in Yemen and seize hostages

Iranian-backed Shi'ite Muslim Houthi forces have taken at least 25 people connected to the US embassy in the Yemeni capital of Sana'a, local reports have said. The compound shut in 2015.
www.dailymail.co.uk www.dailymail.co.uk
greysage said:
What happened to the Marines that should have been protecting the embassy?
Click to expand...
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Worth reflection that this action was carried out by Iranian's Houthi while attempts underway to salvage the JCPOA- if this is good behavior, one can only imagine future action...

Iran-backed Houthi forces breach U.S. Embassy compound in Yemen, detain local employees

The U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, suspended operations in 2015, and the American ambassador was relocated to Saudi Arabia. (Mohammed Huwais/AFP/Getty Images)
By Siobhán O'Grady
and
Amy Cheng

Yesterday at 9:25 p.m. EST|Updated today at 10:44 a.m. EST


CAIRO — Yemeni security employees of the U.S. government have been detained in Sanaa, Yemen, after the compound that once housed the American Embassy was breached by Iran-backed Houthi forces, the State Department said.

For years, the Houthis have controlled Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, and much of the country’s north. The U.S. diplomatic mission suspended operations there in 2015, near the start of the country’s protracted bloody civil war between the Saudi-backed government and the Houthis, who receive support from Iran. The American ambassador and key staff were relocated to Saudi Arabia, a major U.S. ally in the region.
A spokesperson for the State Department said Thursday that a “majority” of the U.S. Embassy staff who were detained have been released and that Washington was engaging in “unceasing” diplomatic efforts to free the security guards still in custody. It is not clear why the Yemeni employees were detained.


The State Department also called on Houthi forces to “immediately vacate” the embassy compound and to “return all seized property.” The detained Yemeni employees are security personnel who had been guarding the outside of the facility, according to a State Department official.
Saudi Arabia is staunchly opposed to the Houthi forces and launched a military intervention in Yemen in 2015, ostensibly seeking to restore Yemen’s internationally recognized government to power. The conflict is also a regional one, in which the Saudis and their allies are seeking to prevent Iran from expanding its influence.
Houthi forces have also directly attacked Saudi Arabia, targeting the kingdom’s airports and oil production facilities. The Saudi government had imposed a near-total blockade on Yemen, exacerbating a severe humanitarian crisis.
Battle for the Badlands: Yemen’s seven-year civil war could turn on fierce fighting in remote Marib province
The U.N. Security Council imposed sanctions this week on three Houthi rebel leaders whom it said helped orchestrate attacks on Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s remote Marib province, a stronghold of the internationally backed government. At least 1,700 government troops were killed in Marib in the first nine months of this year. The Houthis are also believed to have suffered serious casualties but do not release official tolls.


In recent weeks, the Houthis have made some significant territorial gains in Marib. If they were to seize control of the resource-rich province, they would gain near-total control of the country’s north. The Saudi-led coalition is supporting government troops and allied local forces in Marib with airstrikes, but regular shelling, drone and missile attacks have led to high numbers of casualties among government troops. Recent attacks have also killed civilians, including children, in Marib.

The international community is pushing for talks to put an end to the conflict. The Houthis have said they are unwilling to negotiate until port restrictions are lifted and the airport in Sanaa is reopened.
In February, the Biden administration removed the Houthis from a foreign terrorist watch list and announced the end of U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition’s offensive operations, pledging instead to ramp up diplomatic efforts by naming diplomat Timothy Lenderking as special envoy to Yemen.


Lenderking traveled to the region in recent days, in part to try to convince the “Houthis to stop their offensive on Marib and repeated attacks against civilian areas, which are exacerbating the humanitarian crisis,” the State Department said in a statement.
He also planned to “press the parties to implement critical economic reforms, secure regular imports and distribution of fuel, and resume commercial flights to Sana’a airport,” the statement said.
Lenderking previously called Marib the “stumbling block” in negotiations between the sides.

In conservative circles, the detentions and compound breach spurred criticism of President Biden’s foreign policies. U.S. “enemies sense weakness when certain people hold office,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Tex.) said in a tweet that compared the events in Sanaa to events such as the 1979 seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and the deadly 2012 attack on American facilities in Benghazi, Libya, despite the lack of involvement of American personnel in the current case.
Cheng reported from Seoul. Missy Ryan in Washington contributed to this report.
 
O

OldArcher

Has No Life - Lives on TB
jward said:

Israel Radar
@IsraelRadar_com

#Israel must take critical steps vs. #Iran nuclear threat, ex-IDF intelligence chief Yadlin says (via
@N12News
): -Boost intel gathering to detect nuclear weapons project -Finalize strike option "as soon as possible" -Coordinate with US red line for attack

9:45 AM · Nov 12, 2021·Twitter Web App
Click to expand...

Those that doubt the Four Horsemen herald the onslaught of war, are delusional. Even the deaf can hear their approach, and those without sight, can feel the intense heat from the fiery letters upon the wall. Hell, death, and destruction are coming, and NOBODY is doing a damned thing, to stop their arrival. What we have allowed to be sown, we ALL shall reap…

OA
 
T

TorahTips

Membership Revoked
OldArcher said:
Those that doubt the Four Horsemen herald the onslaught of war, are delusional. Even the deaf can hear their approach, and those without sight, can feel the intense heat from the fiery letters upon the wall. Hell, death, and destruction are coming, and NOBODY is doing a damned thing, to stop their arrival. What we have allowed to be sown, we ALL shall reap…

OA
Click to expand...
Another post (2nd today) that deserves a LIKE x 1000 button.
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Miss you, and your analysis- the upcoming festivities won't be the same w/o ya, so plz don't be such a stranger, k?

OldArcher said:
Those that doubt the Four Horsemen herald the onslaught of war, are delusional. Even the deaf can hear their approach, and those without sight, can feel the intense heat from the fiery letters upon the wall. Hell, death, and destruction are coming, and NOBODY is doing a damned thing, to stop their arrival. What we have allowed to be sown, we ALL shall reap…

OA
Click to expand...
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
danielboon

danielboon

TB Fanatic
danielboon

danielboon

TB Fanatic
Iran-Backed Militants Storm US Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment
State Department 'concerned about the breach of the compound,' demands release of hostages
rsz_1gettyimages-1225247122-736x514.jpg
Houthi fighters / Getty ImagesAdam Kredo• November 11, 2021 10:40 am
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https://freebeacon.com/national-sec...assy-in-yemen-seize-hostages-and-equipment/#0
The State Department is working to secure the release of several kidnapped hostages taken by Iran-backed terrorists just a day after the militant group stormed the U.S. embassy facility in Sana'a, Yemen, U.S. officials told the Washington Free Beacon early Thursday.
A group of Houthi rebels reportedly stormed the U.S. compound on Wednesday seeking "large quantities of equipment and materials," according to regional reports translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute. The raid comes just five days after the Houthis kidnapped Yemeni nationals who work for the U.S. embassy. "The alleged raid comes after the Houthis kidnapped three Yemeni nationals affiliated with the U.S. Embassy from one of the employee's private residences in Sana'a on November 5," according to MEMRI. At least 22 other Yemenis were kidnapped by the Houthis in recent weeks, "most of whom worked on the security staff guarding the embassy grounds," according to MEMRI.

The State Department confirmed to the Free Beacon that the Yemeni staffers are being detained without explanation and that the Iran-backed militants stole property after breaching the American facility in Sana'a, which housed U.S. embassy staff prior to the suspension of operations there in 2015.
"The United States has been unceasing in its diplomatic efforts to secure their release," a State Department spokesman told the Free Beacon. "The majority of the detained have been released, but the Houthis continue to detain additional Yemeni employees of the embassy."
Those still being held are "detained without explanation and we call for their immediate release," the State Department spokesman said.
Among those who were kidnapped and held by the Houthis include a former embassy employee, an economic officer, and a U.S. Agency for International Development employee, according to MEMRI.

The United States is also "concerned about the breach of the compound" and is calling "on the Houthis to immediately vacate it and return all seized property."
The Biden administration "will continue its diplomatic efforts to secure the release of our staff and the vacating of our compound, including through our international partners," the State Department said.
The hostage situation is likely to further inflame tensions between the United States and Iran, which arms and funds the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Trump administration designated the Houthis as a terrorist organization, but that designation was removed when the Biden administration took office—a move that was seen as a goodwill gesture to coax Iran into diplomatic negotiations aimed at securing a revamped version of the 2015 nuclear accord.
Update 1:18 p.m.: This post has been updated with additional information on those kidnapped by the Houthis.
Published under: State Department, Yemen
freebeacon.com

Iran-Backed Militants Storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment

The State Department is working to secure the release of several hostages taken by Iran-backed terrorists after they stormed the U.S. embassy facility in Sana'a, Yemen, U.S. officials told the Washington Free Beacon early Thursday.
freebeacon.com freebeacon.com
 
O

OldArcher

Has No Life - Lives on TB
danielboon said:
Ms Cellophane
@Celloph69090524

@Potus
and
@VP
say that the #US Embassy staff are on their own now. #abandoned in #Yemen
Quote Tweet


qWeRiNB4_mini.png


Adam Kredo

@Kredo0
· Nov 11
BREAKING: Iran-Backed Militants Storm US Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment -- State Dept tells me it is 'concerned about the breach of the compound,' demands release of hostages & equipment Iran-Backed Militants Storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen, Seize Hostages and Equipment
Click to expand...

Time to crack open a couple of cans of sunshine over Tehran, and all its’s proxies. It’s well past time that enough is enough…

OA
 
H

Housecarl

On TB every waking moment
Posted for fair use.....
apnews.com

Government-allied forces leave Yemeni city, rebels re-enter

Yemeni officials and the U.N. say forces loyal to the country's internationally recognized government have withdrawn from the strategic port city of Hodeida.
apnews.com apnews.com

Government-allied forces leave Yemeni city, rebels re-enter

By AHMED AL-HAJ
yesterday

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized government have withdrawn from the strategic port city of Hodeida, allowing the rebels to retake key positions there, Yemeni officials and the United Nations said.

The development was a setback to the U.N.-brokered cease-fire in 2018 that ended fighting over Hodeida. The deal was seen as an important first step toward ending the broader conflict in Yemen, devastated by years of civil war, but was never fully implemented.

The pro-government militias, founded and bankrolled by the United Arab Emirates and known as Joint Forces, said late on Friday that they redeployed troops from Hodeida because there was no need for them to stay in the city after the 2018 deal.

The UAE is part of the Saudi-led coalition that has been waging war against the Iran-backed rebels to restore the internationally recognized government to power.

The Joint Forces also said the rebels, known as Houthis, repeatedly violated the 2018 deal.

On Saturday, security officials and residents said the rebels rounded up dozens of people they accuse of supporting the government.

Meanwhile, other pro-government forces that now remain in Hodeida, repelled a Houthi attack south of the coastal city, the officials said. At least three pro-government troops, including a field commander, were killed, they added.

A U.N. mission observing the cease-fire said it wasn’t notified before the withdrawal. It said pro-government forces pulled back from their positions in Hodeida and south of the city, allowing the rebels to take over the vacated positions.

The fighting in Hodeida erupted in mid-2018, after government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition moved in to wrest control of the strategic port from the Houthis. After months of clashes, the warring sides signed the case-fire deal in December that year and agreed to an exchange of more than 15,000 prisoners.

Yemen’s war began with the 2014 takeover of the capital of Sanaa by the Houthis, who control much of the country’s north. The Saudi-led coalition entered the war in 2015, determined to restore the government and oust the rebels.

The conflict has since become a regional proxy war that has killed tens of thousands of civilians and fighters. The war also created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, leaving millions suffering from food and medical care shortages and pushing the country to the brink of famine.

In recent months, the Houthis have attacked government forces in different areas, including the provinces of Shabwa, Bayda and Marib, despite calls by the U.N., the United States and others to stop fighting and engage in negotiations to find a settlement to the conflict.

Government forces pushed back the rebels in fierce battels south of the crucial city of Marib, the provincial capital, officials from both sides said Saturday.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media, and the residents did so for fear of reprisals.
 
O

OldArcher

Has No Life - Lives on TB
danielboon said:
Once you crack it open there will be no turning back
Click to expand...

True. However, war was long ago declared by the mullahs and their ilk, and they have made NO effort to ameliorate the situation. They foment war upon the helpless, the hopeless, and the innocent. They are scum, and Satan’s spawn. They, themselves, deserve death.

OA
 
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