US Carrier Strike Group to Houthi HQ – “I’ll see your two-thousand-dollar drone and raise it with my two-million-dollar missile.” This bet, in the potentially lethal poker game being played out in the Red Sea, is win-lose for both sides, and for bigger stakes than drones and missiles.
The Iranian-backed Houthis, who are attacking ships with drones, win because they burnish their credentials for standing up for the Palestinians. They say they will continue to attack shipping until Israel halts its military campaign in Gaza although the actual goal is to use that war to establish themselves as the strongest force in Yemen and to grow their regional influence. They lose because from now on it’s unlikely their drones will hit their targets.
