09/03/2021
27723 times read
09/03/2021
27723 times read
IT is no longer acceptable to fall for the claims pertaining to what the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is subjected to, by saying, “They are terrorist attacks carried out by the Iranian-backed Houthi group in light of the continuing missile attacks that coincide with the negotiations between Washington and Tehran”.
It is time to call things by their names - to call a spade a spade - so that blood is not lost between the canny interpretations.
The truth of the main actor - Iran - should be highlighted, given that it engages in these negotiations with missiles and drones, attacks the unarmed and the innocent in Saudi Arabia, and covers itself with the Houthi group, which we know is nothing more than a faded mask and no one falls for its deception anymore.
The escalation that the Yemeni front is witnessing is one of the cycles of pressure exercised by the Tehran regime. We have to look at the “unknown” missile strikes against US installations in Iraq, as well as what Lebanon is witnessing in terms of aggravation that led to the abyss, and the act of advocating Shia doctrine in Syria, all of which are axes of fire and sabotage practised by Iran.
In this regard, condemnation and denunciation are no longer sufficient. Today, whoever refuses to confront Iran will tomorrow find himself a victim of its atrocities.
Therefore, the Arab countries, particularly the Gulf states, are required to immunize themselves from this continuous aggression because the Iranian persistence will not stop at the borders of its agreement with the United States.
For 40 years now, the Mullahs regime has been seeking to impose its hegemony over the region. As it claimed, it considers the region as its backyard, something that it has been publicly speaking about day and night.
As for the United States, which brags daily that it is the strategic ally of Saudi Arabia and is committed to its protection and stability, it needs to be firm in the face of Iranian arrogance. If Joe Biden’s administration expects Tehran to positively reciprocate, then this administration is mistaken; in fact, it will be committing a major sin that history cannot forgive.
All that the Biden Administration need to do is to go back to the events that accompanied the negotiation of the defunct nuclear agreement, and how the Revolutionary Guard was pressing with blood and fire in all the squares allied to Washington to convince that the aggression against Saudi Arabia was targeting its prestige and strategic interests, not Ras Tanura or Dhahran.
In addition to all this, the world is required to protect its oil supplies and economic security. It must act by forming an international front that works to defeat the aggressor with all available means, instead of settling for condemnation and denouncation only.
All that is left to say is - It is naive to accept the Houthi interpretation that its factions were the ones that launched the ballistic missile at the oil fields at Ras Tanura, as this group does not have the capability that qualify it for that act.
Rather, this missile was launched by an Iranian warship from the sea. Therefore if things are not called by their names, Iran will continue with its blackmailing and hiding behind a tattered mask. Its terrorist demeanor will become a reality, wondering if the international community will accept it.
By Ahmed Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times