While everybody is fixated on Baltimore, the Middle East continues its slump into degeneracy. As Saudi slaughter of rebel Houthis ensues following a fierce altercation on the Saudi border Friday, hundreds of U.S. citizens remain trapped in Yemen amidst turmoil, as the Wall Street Journal reported last night.
On the home front, Baltimore basks in “victory” at the indictment of the six cops implicated in various crimes related to the death of Freddie Gray Meanwhile the Saudis, with the aid of the U.S. government, continue murdering civilians, and hundreds of U.S. citizens remain in the country.
According to the State Department, a rescue mission of U.S. citizens remaining in Yemen would place “U.S. military assets” at risk, and therefore is too risky given the involvement of the local al Qaeda branch, not to mention the instability of the unmitigated calamity that is the crisis in Yemen.
The U.S. typically evacuates its own citizens from conflict zones as things start to heat up, but the fact that Uncle Sam is leaving Americans in Yemen high and dry is testament to the gravity of this situation.
The Saudi`s started bombing the allegedly pro-Iranian rebel forces after a fierce skirmish on the border, resulting in the deaths of three Saudi troops and dozens of Houthi rebels. The Kingdom, in retaliation for the rebel strike, exacted vengeance upon Sanaa, the Yemeni capital, resulting in the deaths of 20 civilians on Friday.
The fact that this mess is spilling across the Saudi border while the Saudi King, Salman bin Abdulaziz, is restructuring the Saudi government should do wonders in the commodity markets. That´s right, say ciao to cheap oil if this whole thing gets any more unstable; which it will if the Saudis continue to blow up the poorest nation in the region, which suffers from a strong al Qaeda presence and no active government.
“These are serious changes that will have repercussions not only domestically but also internationally,” warned Khalil Jahshan, the executive director for the Arab Centre of Washington from Fairfax, Virginia. This “Political earthquake,” like the earthquake in Nepal, is serious, and deserves more attention than it´s currently getting. “The Saudi Arabia we knew a few hours ago is no longer,” reported Al Jazeera, quoting Jahshan on Wednesday.
Alalysis by Joe Seiss