Red Sea / Houthi rebels situation

Iran has been trying to hijack oil tankers and shipping (in international waters) for years. It's been on TV documentaries like "Warship". The Houthis' are armed and backed by Iran. The real Yemeni government support this action and quite obviously want rid of the Houthis'. As has already been said, they aren't just attacked OUR Navy, it isn't Yemen we are targeting and this isn't just about shipping to Israel (which is what they said it is).

It's quite right we have in the past gotten involved in things in the middle east when we should not have, however when you have countries attacking shipping that half the world depend on for Oil supplies and goods in international waters.. then someone must act. And as usual since the US and UK are one of the very few countries that has any ability these days to do anything more than a few hundred miles away from home.. we have.

So civilian lives in the ME don't matter as long we can get cheap goods from China.

Millions of people around the world marching for peace and we start a new war.

We haven't hit civilians, we've hit the Houthi's supplies. The Houthis do not equal Yemeni's.

We haven't started a war but it feels very much like Iran wants to start one.

It isn't just our goods, it's half the worlds goods and oil and gas, and the ability to freely travel in international waters. That means something.
 
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Ugh, Rishi on a war footing going in to an election year. Fantastic.

Trump lauded the assassination of Soleimani going into an election year, and here we are on this side of the pond antagonising Iran going into an election year.
 
Are we going to blame the cost of living on the Houthis now?

Instead of wasting millions on bombs, give it to the UK mothers who are taking out loans to feed their babies.
 
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I notice you didn't answer the first bit...
Has Piers Morgan entered the chat? You want me to condemn the Houthis before you'll engage?

The Houthis want Israel to stop bombing Gaza, so they start bombing ships. The US\UK want the Houthis to stop, so they start bombing them. Where does it stop?
 
Saudi bombed Yemen/the Houthis for ~8 yrs and they're still here, not sure why our airstrikes alone would be significantly more successful.

There is bombing, then there is bombing.

On the night of 9/10 March 1945, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) conducted a devastating firebombing raid on Tokyo, the Japanese capital city. This attack was code-named Operation Meetinghouse by the USAAF and is known as the Great Tokyo Air Raid in Japan.[1] Bombs dropped from 279 Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers burned out much of eastern Tokyo. More than 90,000 and possibly over 100,000 Japanese people were killed, mostly civilians, and one million were left homeless, making it the most destructive single air attack in human history. The Japanese air and civil defenses proved largely inadequate; 14 American aircraft and 96 airmen were lost.
 
I don't follow these events too closely but remind me of a recent conflict in the ME which the UK entered without the US.

That doesn't mean the US told us to. If you disrupt UK shipping interests then you can expect the UK military to get involved. We're quite experienced at ensuring our ships can get to our Island.
 
I remember at the beginning of this that an American vessel in the area had noticed missiles heading towards Israel and had shot them down when I read the news at 4am.
When I returned in the evening this was corrected to a American missile destroyer that just happened to be in the area, came under attack from the Houthi rebels and had managed to defend itself.

Hmmmmm

There have been reports of both those scenarios (and continues to be so)
You probably read two different reports and assumed they were the same thing.
Ofc breaking news often gets rewritten as more and or information is clarified.
 
That doesn't mean the US told us to. If you disrupt UK shipping interests then you can expect the UK military to get involved. We're quite experienced at ensuring our ships can get to our Island.
Why didn't they get involved during Brexit :)

The UK always follows the lead of the US at any UN votes.
 
Because running in guns blazing has worked so well in the past.
Has Piers Morgan entered the chat? You want me to condemn the Houthis before you'll engage?

The Houthis want Israel to stop bombing Gaza, so they start bombing ships. The US\UK want the Houthis to stop, so they start bombing them. Where does it stop?
Are we going to blame the cost of living on the Houthis now?

Instead of wasting millions on bombs, give it to the UK mothers who are taking out loans to feed their babies.
Would the UK have got involved if the US didn't tell us to? What's your point?

Iran isn't allowed to look out for it's neighbours? None of the western conflicts in the ME have been a success, maybe it's time to stop destabilising the region further.
Why didn't they get involved during Brexit :)

The UK always follows the lead of the US at any UN votes.
Jesus christ, throw enough **** something will stick. Do you plan to put any substance behind any of your posts or are you just gonna run around scatter gun approach?

Houthi's are reaping what they sowed. They have been warned and have decided not to heed those warnings. They are very much in the "Find out" phase.
 
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There have been reports of both those scenarios (and continues to be so)
You probably read two different reports and assumed they were the same thing.
Ofc breaking news often gets rewritten as more and or information is clarified.

Same vessel, same news station and same day, although I did turn left at the corner shop, whereas I usually turn right, so it was probably that.
 
Yeah, building up animosity and breeding the next wave of anti-western sentiment...

So we should do nothing? Sit by whilst ships are hijacked and supply routes stopped. Let Iran, China etc get even more an impression it can do what it wants because the West is so scared of it's past that it refuses to the do the right thing in isolated circumstances. Right ok.

The Houthis want Israel to stop bombing Gaza, so they start bombing ships. The US\UK want the Houthis to stop, so they start bombing them. Where does it stop?

The Houthis don't care about the Palestinians. Half the middle east sits idly by and does nothing, refuses to take in any of them. They're just using it as an excuse and are acting on behalf of Iran. We know they are supplied by Iran, trained by Iran and are following their tactics.

It stops when the Houthis' stop attacking shipping in international shipping lanes. Perhaps if the intl community had a back bone and helped the Yemeni government out instead of letting them get overthrown in the first place we wouldn't be in this mess. But as we know the UN is gutless (because of Russia, Israel and the US) and won't ever do anything to stop anything. Instead Saudi Arabia has had a go (which the UK arms) and has killed thousands of.. yes Houthi's but also civilians.
 
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