After the United States failed to fulfill its pledges to protect Israeli shipping and eliminate Yemeni capabilities, the United States instead advised companies linked to the Israeli enemy not to pass through Bab al-Mandab because it is exposed to the threat of Yemeni missiles.
The Joint Maritime Information Center, affiliated with the US-UK aggression coalition, issued what it described as an analysis of the movement of ships heading to the ports of the Zionist entity. The center offered what it called a "free analysis service" to companies wishing to assess whether they are on the Yemeni target list, using analytical tools claimed to be similar to those used by the Yemeni armed forces to assess the links of ships and companies to the Israeli enemy. This announcement, from the point of view of observers, represents an explicit acknowledgment of the effectiveness of Yemeni intelligence tools and the accuracy of the information upon which the armed forces rely to carry out their naval operations with repeated success, as attested by the enemy itself.
The center claims that any shipping company can send an email to a US Navy address containing details of the vessel or company being assessed, and will receive a response with the results of the analysis. It also warns that full legal responsibility rests with the company itself, indicating the coalition's inability to provide full protection for vessels dealing with the entity.
Truman Humiliates Washington
The Indian Defense Review, a military affairs magazine, reported that the return of the US aircraft carrier Truman from the Red Sea, which was supposed to be a show of force, turned into a humiliation for the US Navy. The magazine added that the aircraft carrier Truman returned from the Red Sea to its base, completing a mission that was supposed to demonstrate American power, but instead left behind a series of costly failures.
It emphasized that the presence of the aircraft carrier Truman failed to curb the asymmetric threats posed by the Yemeni front, which continued to launch drones and missiles throughout the deployment. It added that the Pentagon ordered a comprehensive review of aircraft carrier operations in response to the incidents in the Red Sea.
According to the report, the mission led by the aircraft carrier as part of Operation Rough Rider under the supervision of US Central Command included more than 11,000 airstrikes and the dropping of over one million pounds of munitions on targets in Yemeni territory, allegedly targeting the infrastructure of what the Americans call the "Houthis." Despite this massive campaign, the website acknowledges that Yemeni forces, supported by popular will and locally developed missile and drone capabilities, remained effective and influential in the maritime arena and succeeded in keeping Bab al-Mandab Strait out of US control.
Between airstrikes and demonstration flights, the US Navy suffered heavy losses in equipment and operational performance. During the Truman mission, a series of internal incidents and technical errors occurred, most notably the accidental downing of an American F/A-18 by the cruiser USS Gettysburg in December, in addition to the loss of two other fighter jets in April and May of the same year. The losses resulting from these incidents were estimated at approximately $180 million, while the pilots miraculously survived.
The setbacks worsened when the aircraft carrier Truman collided with a Panamanian-flagged merchant vessel near the Suez Canal, leading to the dismissal of the carrier's then-commander, Captain Dave Snowden, in a rare move that reflects the extent of the failure within the US Navy. The magazine quoted military sources in the Pentagon as saying that these incidents reveal "deep systemic problems in training, discipline, and equipment maintenance."
The report indicated that the reaction within the US military establishment was not insignificant. The Department of Defense ordered a comprehensive review of aircraft carrier operations, including landing and takeoff protocols, aircraft management, and the chain of command, in an attempt to contain the fallout from these operational scandals. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Christopher Grady also acknowledged that the recent events "do not reflect the standards of excellence we expect from our fleet," as he put it.
The Art of War Management
The US-based National Institute for Deterrence Studies stated that the Yemeni army has succeeded in managing asymmetric warfare by skillfully utilizing its less costly capabilities than those of its adversaries to achieve significant economic and morale benefits. This makes it difficult for forces with superior capabilities to achieve any deterrent effect against Sana'a.
The Institute's online magazine, Global Security Review, published a report examining the reasons for the failure of attempts to deter Sana'a's forces and halt their naval attacks on ships linked to the Israeli enemy. It pointed to Sana'a's forces' strategies for managing asymmetric warfare in terms of costs and capabilities, the report added that the Yemeni army does not rely on expensive platforms or advanced technologies. Rather, its capabilities rely on low-cost, high-impact weapons, such as drones, cruise missiles, remotely piloted explosive boats, and sea mines. "An example of these cost-effective weapons is a $20,000 Yemeni missile that was able to shoot down a $30 million MQ-9 drone."
The report concluded that "the Houthis' asymmetric naval doctrine is based on the premise that every strike is successful, even if it is not strategically decisive, because it has a tremendous economic and psychological impact, including disrupting shipping and reinforcing the narrative of Western and Arab military impotence."
According to the report, “A single drone strike that damages or delays a ship could raise global insurance premiums, force shipping companies to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope, and, most importantly, undermine confidence in Western and regional maritime dominance.”
The magazine said, “This economic and psychological burden is precisely the kind of effect the Yemenis seek: demonstrating that a modest force can challenge global trade routes and demonstrate its resilience against superior forces. In doing so, the Yemenis maintain greater local support and project their symbolic power throughout the region, activating other non-state actors and challenging deterrence models based on superior force.” It added, “The Houthi threat is difficult to ne eliminated entirely, and this has even posed a challenge to the United States.”
It considered that "the Houthi threat persists because it defies traditional military logic and thrives in gaps in established security structures," noting that "despite the United States, the United Kingdom, and Israel launching airstrikes on Houthi infrastructure, their armed capabilities appear far from being effectively diminished."
Intelligence Deficit
The Cradle reported that the United States and "Israel" launched a secret intelligence war on Yemen to fill a "huge intelligence vacuum" regarding the Yemeni armed forces. The American newspaper noted in a report that this resistant society, along with Sana'a's policy of "silence," made them difficult to penetrate.
The report explained that after Yemen joined "Al-Aqsa Flood" operation in October 2023, recruitment and cyber-infiltration attempts escalated significantly to compensate for the information gap. American and Israeli intelligence agencies used various methods, such as sending messages from foreign numbers, offering fake job offers, targeting journalists and activists on social media, and recruiting agents under the guise of international organizations and delivery companies.
The Cradle noted that the Yemeni strikes were not limited to the Red Sea, but reached deep into the Zionist occupation, targeting strategic sites such as Lod Airport, known in Israel as "Ben Gurion." It explained that this escalation revealed an intelligence gap within the criminal entity, which had previously considered the front. Yemen is "distant and ineffective."
Former Israeli National Security Adviser Yaakov Amidror acknowledged the intelligence services' failure to understand the Yemeni scene, which contributed to the element of surprise. Former "Defense Minister," the criminal Avigdor Lieberman, called for opening infiltration and recruitment routes in Yemen by supporting local forces to engage the Yemeni armed forces, a reference to the pro-Zionist hotel government.
The newspaper revealed some of the methods used by intelligence services to gather information: (Searching for Yemenis of Jewish origin who are fluent in the Sana'a dialect to recruit them as spies, posting massive advertisements on social media offering cash rewards of up to one million dollars for information on leaders or on the "naval support" file.)
They also included recruiting spies who received advanced training in Europe and returned under the cover of international or media organizations to monitor sensitive military sites and gather technical information on missiles and drones. Using encrypted transmitters, advanced spyware, and satellite communication systems to secure communications.
The report concluded by noting that this electronic warfare aims to destabilize Internal cohesion in Sana'a through espionage and psychological manipulation.
