The Saudi Peace Initiative and the Iranian Predicament

Al-Qabas, Kuwait, April 9

I have stumbled upon many voices who vigorously defended the Houthis in Yemen by claiming that they are patriots defending their country’s independence. However, in recent weeks, following the rejection of the Saudi peace initiative, it has become unequivocally clear that the Houthis are nothing more than an Iranian arm. They have no independent decision-making and not autonomy outside the marching orders received directly from Tehran. The truth of the matter is that the Saudi initiative implicated Iran. On paper, Iran has always called for peace in Yemen. But when Saudi Arabia presented a detailed initiative, the mullah regime instructed its Houthi mercenaries to intensify their military operations against Saudi civilian and oil installations, in order to kill the initiative in its infancy. Once again, the Iranian regime falls into a quagmire of aggravation, and it becomes clear to the world, especially to the Americans, that betting on the Iranian regime with its current policies in any upcoming political settlement is foolish. This foolishness resembles the wishful thinking of former US President Barack Obama, who naively thought he could influence Iran’s behavior. Unfortunately, the disastrous Obama policy toward Iran provided the mullahs with huge financial resources that were exploited in places like Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen. Those US dollars funneled to the mullah regime by the Obama administration have led to the killing and displacement of millions of Arabs. The Houthis have turned down the offer to engage in a Yemeni national dialogue in which all Yemeni factions, including the Houthis, participate. The recent Saudi peace initiative and the Houthis’ disregard for it clearly revealed that the Iranian regime is financing the Houthis with the mere goal of besieging Saudi Arabia and undermining the kingdom’s political stability, modernization efforts, and economic growth. The Iranian regime is a true enemy of Gulf Cooperation Council states. Despite the desperate attempts of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to paint his country as an innocent actor, the world knows full well that the current Iranian regime is a true sponsor of conflict in the world. Behind the diplomatic facade stands a fierce terrorist face that seeks to spew violence and hatred. –Dahim Al-Qahtani (translated by Asaf Zilberfarb)