PNN – US capacity to intervene in Yemen has been constrained following the destruction of American military infrastructure in the region during Iranian attacks.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network; recent developments on Yemen’s west coast—along with Ansarullah’s consolidation of its position in areas overlooking the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait—have ushered the security equation of this strategic waterway into a new phase.
Ansarullah is consolidating its position along the West Coast and approaching critical points near the Bab al-Mandab Strait at a time when the United States had previously made the security of shipping in this region a central pillar of its policy regarding Yemen. From this perspective, developments on the West Coast represent not merely a battlefield dynamic between Yemeni forces, but a test of the extent of U.S. freedom of action regarding one of the region’s most significant security issues.
During the Gaza war and Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, Ansarullah directly entered the regional equation by launching attacks against ships linked to the Zionist regime and its interests in the Red Sea.
This move transformed the Bab al-Mandab Strait into a critical arena for exerting pressure on the Zionist regime and its Western backers. Initially, the United States, along with certain European and Arab nations, attempted to contain this pressure by establishing maritime mechanisms and conducting limited operations; however, these measures failed to yield the results Washington desired.
Ultimately, the United States intervened directly, launching Operation “Raging Horseman” in an effort to degrade Ansarullah’s ability to threaten shipping in the Red Sea. Washington later unilaterally halted the operation, claiming that Ansarullah’s capacity to conduct attacks against vessels had been significantly diminished. Subsequent developments demonstrated that this claim did not signify the elimination of Ansarullah’s capacity to return to the maritime theater.
It is precisely here that the significance of the current situation becomes apparent. Ansarallah is not merely an actor capable of attacking ships; it is consolidating a geographic foothold along the western coast, near the Bab al-Mandab Strait. If these recent advances are secured, the issue will shift from countering sporadic maritime attacks to the control of a strategic position adjacent to one of the world’s most important waterways.
Under these circumstances, it was expected that Washington would intervene directly; just as it had in the previous phase—especially given that Saudi-backed forces on the West Coast were facing intense pressure from Ansarullah and were abandoning their positions one after another. However, the United States refrained from direct, large-scale involvement in the conflict. According to an Axios report, Mohammed bin Salman personally contacted Donald Trump during the Ansarullah advance to request US Air Force intervention in the war, but Trump did not agree to the request.
This decision must be evaluated within the context of the new U.S. military situation in the region. In the interim between previous U.S. operations in Yemen and current developments, a direct regional conflict has emerged between Iran and the United States, significantly impacting a substantial portion of Washington’s military capabilities. Iran has exerted immense pressure on U.S. military bases and infrastructure, rendering a large share of U.S. military assets in the Middle East non-operational. Simultaneously, in an effort to maintain military and economic pressure on Iran, the U.S. has kept a significant portion of its military power focused on the country to ensure the full implementation of the economic blockade against it.
Under these circumstances, opening another major military front in Yemen is not a simple decision. Confrontation with Iran has strained U.S. military resources and ammunition supplies, limiting the country’s capacity to conduct large-scale operations on multiple fronts simultaneously. Therefore, Washington cannot base its decision solely on the strategic importance of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait while ignoring the costs of intervention in Yemen.
The U.S. decision to refrain from direct intervention does not, of course, imply political acceptance of Ansarullah’s control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The waterway remains of vital importance to the United States, Israel, and their Arab allies. The issue, however, is that political opposition to the entrenchment of Ansarullah’s position does not necessarily equate to possessing the military capacity to immediately alter the status quo. Recent developments have laid bare precisely this gap between Washington’s objectives and its operational capabilities.
This shift in the situation is also of particular importance to Saudi Arabia. Riyadh continues to seek a change in the balance of power on the ground in Yemen, yet it can no longer rely on direct, all-out US intervention with the same confidence as in the past. While Saudi Arabia may persist with its logistical support and military operations, it can no longer expect the US Air Force to step in at every critical juncture to instantly alter the equation. This constraint has narrowed the range of options available to Riyadh and, conversely, created greater opportunities for Ansarullah to consolidate its gains.
Under these circumstances, Ansarullah sees no need to immediately draw the United States into a direct confrontation. Consolidating its position on the West Coast and securing control over the Bab al-Mandab—without provoking Washington into launching a full-scale war—could represent a significant achievement for Sana’a. The more this position is consolidated, the higher the cost will be for the U.S. and its allies to reverse the situation and restore the status quo ante.
Therefore, the significance of recent developments should not be sought solely in the shifting lines of contact along Yemen’s western coast. A more critical development is the change in the United States’ capacity to respond to events in Yemen. Ansarallah has managed to strengthen its position near one of the world’s most sensitive waterways at a time when the U.S. is embroiled in a regional conflict with Iran; meanwhile, despite opposing this trend, Washington has refrained from direct intervention to halt it.
Bab al-Mandab has now become a barometer for gauging the extent of U.S. military freedom of action in the region. The issue is not merely the advance of Ansar Allah; rather, it is the fact that such an advance—occurring in one of the region’s most sensitive areas and coinciding with mounting direct pressure from Iran on U.S. military capabilities—has yet to trigger direct intervention by Washington. While this situation does not signify the end of the U.S. role in Yemen, it demonstrates that the country’s capacity to simultaneously manage regional fronts through military means has become more constrained than in the past. If this limitation persists, it could cement Ansarullah’s position around Bab al-Mandab into a reality that is difficult to alter, while also carrying significant implications for Iran in anticipating how the U.S. might behave regarding a potential conflict with Tehran.