The U.S. government has long sought
to distance itself from the morally inexcusable war on Yemen—but
this public relations effort is even more difficult after The
New York Times reported on
May 3 that, in December of last year, U.S. Special Forces (commonly
known as the Green Berets) deployed to Saudi Arabia’s border with
Yemen. Though Saudi Arabia and the UAE are occupying parts of Yemen,
the countries rely on Yemeni, Latin
American, Sudanese, Blackwater and
even al-Qaeda mercenaries
to fight on the ground.
Mercenaries also include former U.S. Military
officer Stephen
Toumajan, who commands the UAE’s military helicopter branch.
The Saudi-Yemeni border, on the other hand, represents the only front
where Yemeni and Saudi
soldiers are engaged in direct on-the-ground combat. By
placing American special forces at the Saudi-Yemeni border, the
United States is engaged in direct combat with Yemen’s
Houthis.
Not only does this
reality contradict the
Pentagon’s previous statements about its involvement in Yemen, it
also brings into question the U.S. government’s intended goals. Is
the U.S. military so committed to achieving Saudi Arabia’s mission
to regain control of Yemen that it is willing to risk American
lives? Alternatively, if the U.S. is advising and training soldiers,
repairing and refueling aircraft, patrolling Yemeni
waters alongside Saudi Arabia and now fighting Yemenis on the ground,
is it really just Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen?
Following the latest revelations of
the increased U.S. role in Yemen, Sen. Bernie Sanders announced he
would seek “further clarification on these activities,” while
Rep. Mark Pocan urged Congress
to “stop this secret, unconstitutional war.” Yet members of
Congress ought to consider that this has always been America’s
war—from the very beginning.
Under the pretense of restoring
Yemen’s United Nations-recognized president Abd-Rabbu Mansour
Hadito power and curtailing Iran’s supposed
influence in Yemen, the Saudi-led coalition—including the
United States—launched a brutal military campaign on March 26,
2015. Arms dealers across the world rushed to capitalize on a golden
opportunity: customers with deep pockets.
Despite purchasing the latest
“smart” bombs that,
in theory, should minimize civilian casualties, the Saudi-led
coalition continues to kill staggering numbers of civilians in Yemen.
These include indiscriminate attacks on
civilians and civilian infrastructure that have led to the collapse
of the health, economic and educational sectors in Yemen. Recently,
airstrikes targeted a wedding party that left the bride
and 32 others dead, while the injured endured an hour-long
journey to the nearest Doctors Without Borders-supported hospital
using donkeys.
Saudi Arabia and its allies are also using starvation as
a weapon by imposing a land air and sea blockade that keeps food
and medicines out, while trapping people in. Despite committing
apparent war crimes in Yemen, they continue to be assisted militarily
by members of the international community.
Countries such as Canada,
the United
Kingdom and the United
States continue to sell billions of dollars' worth of arms
to the Saudi-led coalition despite warnings
from human rights groups about their use against Yemeni
civilians. But immoral as they are, selling weapons to warring
parties does not in itself constitute the seller’s military
entanglement in the buyer’s war. In this regard, however, the
United States distinguishes itself from most countries not officially
in the Saudi-led coalition. As we enter the fourth year of the war on
Yemen, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the United States
is, in fact, at war with Yemen.
Without first seeking congressional
approval, the United States launched into action alongside the
Saudis, offering logistical
support and training to the Saudi military. Specifically,
the U.S. Army trains Saudi soldiers, advises military personnel, and
helps maintain, repair and update vehicles and aircraft sold to
the Saudis. The U.S. Army also refuels Saudi
aircraft mid-air in Yemeni airspace. This support is not without
compensation: The U.S. Army boasts123
contracts in Saudi Arabia totaling more than $120 million per
month.
This level of involvement in Saudi
Arabia’s war on Yemen prompted members of Congress to invoke the
War Powers Resolution twice since October 2017—once in
the House and
once more in the Senate—to
challenge the unauthorized U.S. role
in Yemen. The House measure (H.Con.Res.81) was stripped of its
privileged status and was therefore not granted a vote in Congress.
The Senate bill (S.J.Res.54), introduced by Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.),
fared better in that it was not stripped of its status. However,
rather than voting to extricate the United States from hostilities in
Yemen, Senators instead voted to table the
bill. The extent of U.S. support to the Saudi-led Coalition, however,
continues to be uncovered.
As the U.S. Congress fails to take
responsibility for withdrawing U.S. support from the Saudi-led war,
the world’s worst
humanitarian crisis continues to unfold in Yemen, the
poorest country in the Middle East. With more than 80
percent of the population in need of humanitarian aid, most
Yemenis are unable to find food, water, medicine, fuel and other
basic necessities of life. While some reports indicate at
least 10,000 civilians
have been killed in the war, a less-reported figure is the death of
113,000 children—63,000 in
2016 and another 50,000 in
2017—whose lives were cut short due to malnutrition and preventable
diseases such as cholera. The crisis in Yemen is the direct result of
a three-year bombing campaign and blockade imposed on Yemen by U.S.
allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. As Yemen’s
wealthiest neighbors continue to destroy it, the United States has
responded by secretly increasing its military role.
U.S. lawmakers—and the American
people—must not ignore this role any longer.
>> The article above was written by Shireen Al-Adeimi, and is reprinted from In These Times.
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