Anti-Iran Allegations Sign of US-Saudi Military Bankruptcy: Yemen
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Mohammad al-Bakhiti, a member of Yemen’s Supreme Political Council, said the US-Saudi allegations that Iran has led recent drone strikes on Saudi oil installations are indicative of their “political and military bankruptcy”.
Speaking to Tasnim, Bakhiti pointed to the Saturday drone attacks on Saudi company Aramco’s oil processing facilities and said, “American and Saudi radars are unable to intercept Yemeni aircraft.”
“If they had been able to intercept the aircraft, they would have shoot them down,” he added.
The Yemeni official further rejected US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’ claim that the drones come from Iran, saying there is no proof or evidence to substantiate the claim.
“Essentially, he (Pompeo) had to provide proof that the aircraft came from Iran but he didn’t,” he said, adding, “This is a military and political bankruptcy for Saudi Arabia and the United States.”
The Yemeni forces on Saturday launched drone attacks on two plants at the heart of Saudi Arabia's oil industry, including the world's biggest petroleum processing facility.
Pompeo put the blame for the operation on Iran, claiming, “Tehran is behind nearly 100 attacks on Saudi Arabia” and that “there is no evidence the attacks came from Yemen.”
The attacks against the Saudi positions came in retaliation for the continued massacre of civilians and destruction of Yemen’s infrastructure by the coalition led by the Riyadh regime.
Yemen’s defenseless people have been under massive attacks by the coalition for more than four years but Riyadh has reached none of its objectives in Yemen so far.
Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia and some of its Arab allies have been carrying out deadly airstrikes against the Houthi Ansarullah movement in an attempt to restore power to fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.
Official UN figures say that more than 15,000 people have been killed in Yemen since the Saudi-led bombing campaign began.
The Saudi war has impacted over seven million children in Yemen who now face a serious threat of famine, according to UNICEF figures. Over 6,000 children have either been killed or sustained serious injuries since 2015, UN children’s agency said. The humanitarian situation in the country has also been exacerbated by outbreaks of cholera, polio, and measles.