Debt Rattle September 17 2026
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Peter Paul Rubens Saturn devouring one of his sons 1636 • State of the Union: Five takeaways From Ursula Von Der Leyen’s Speech (Euronews) • Von der L
[See the full post at: Debt Rattle September 17 2026]“Houthis Issue Video Of Saudi F-15 Shootdown, As Ground Clashes Intensify In Yemen
Man, even the Houthis are better at this than Iran. Wow. Is Iran going to start this war sometime soon?
“House Panel Votes To Hold Billionaire Leon Black In Contempt For Ghosting Epstein Investigators
In contempt? I’m sure if I did that, they would do the very same, and not like, jail time at all.
“Miss West, are you trying to show contempt for this court?
“On the contrary, your Honor, I was doin’ my best to conceal it. – Mae WestCongress only shows contempt for the American People. Since this is about Epstein, that goes for Thomas Massie. He’s been looking for appropriate payouts for the victims of Epstein that were missed. Trots them out regular. Ummm, top candidate FLIGHT HOSTESS OF EPSTEIN on the Lolita Express. What was she victim of? Getting a paycheck? She also never slept with anyone at all, and never saw a single thing, ever. So she’s a victim of what, exactly? Selective blindness?
But Trump won’t pay her millions...just because she was Epstein’s trusted staff in the whole affair. Way to go Massie! Nothin’ says “honest broker” like that!
“Fed Hikes Rates For First Time Since July 2023, Signals 1 More Hike In 2026
“Experts” promised Warsh existed to be a Yes man, and lower rates for Trumpeee. So who wants to do the walk of shame, admitting wrong publicly and apologizing for being a doofus? Anyone? They ALL said it. Trump only installs loyalists, 100 other lines. Anyone? A SINGLE person who has ANY integrity at all? No?
Here’s one: Trump offers largest weapons shipment in (recent) history to Israel.
House (re)passes war power resolutions act for Iran.Disagree with both. Sort of thing you should lose elections for.
1) We don’t have wars without declaration of wars. And there are additional needs, like “A reason”.
2) Israel has demonstrated what they will do with the bombs. They are not trustworthy. Don’t even care about the money of it, but we should long have shut that off from them too.
3) If he has any case for war at all, he hasn’t made it.
These are very clear actions, and worth changing your vote over. There are some practical problems though:
1) Trump is not up for election. So you have to ask each candidate if they agree.
2) If the eg the Congressman agrees with limits on both of these, do they also eg want to steal your money and put you in a prison camp, chop up your kids, or some similar recent misbehavior demonstrated by many?Does it, for example do this: “
“Anthropic is not just seeking regulatory capture. It has built a regulatory capture machine that cannot be turned off. ”Like all other industries. THIS IS THE PURPOSE OF GOVERNMENT. To be captured and enforce monopolies. And subsidies.
“Two mystery men were with him at a gun store weeks before Butler. Another unidentified man trained with him the day before.
Well it’s about time. Now when are they going to admit the reason they were suddenly arduous and never-before-seen helpful in washing the blood off the roof was because it wasn’t Crooks’? Why do you think his parents are terrified and suddenly lost all their silverware? And are held hostage by the DNC? (Lawyers)
“It’s sad to watch a globalist mob destroy an entire continent.
• State of the Union: Five takeaways From Ursula Von Der Leyen’s Speech (Euronews)That is literally what Globalists do and is their sole purpose. Both as Globalists, and as a Death Cult.
For Canada, how does that for for them being “British North America” and being used 1) As a colony to extract and destroy and 2) As a Ukraine, TO BE destroyed, throwing their bodies against America by the millions for similarly no reason?
And here I thought it would take 1-3 years to show that, and it barely took 3 months. Well, at least I don’t have 2 ½ years of being called an idiot as the evidence slowly builds to worry about. Makes me sad: I’ll miss that part. It’s tradition for things to be blindingly obvious like when we go to “0% Interest Rates” and “Subprime is Contained.”
“Trump may close the border.
• EU Opens Door For Canada To Become Bloc’s First-Ever “Associate Member” (ZH)Trump literally MUST close the border. It’s made evident in the subtext that Carney subjugated Canada to China, creating an end-run for Chinese products to be tariff-free. It could be worded differently, and Carney is well aware that the U.S. “Veto power” under some discussion was for this express reason. But China didn’t want Canada. Too much bulls—t I guess. So Carney has now erased Canadian sovereignty (or intends to) without a vote, referring, or even informing Parliament, in a minority government, to Europe, who has already demonstrated the world’s clearest case for Fascism outside of China or North Korea. They jail hundreds of dissenters daily for the tiniest crimes imaginable.
I hate to keep repeating, but this is IDENTICAL to Yanukovich: Europe was collapsing and needed to extract and erase a whole nation – as now demonstrated Blackrock, ADM have done. Yanukovich wasn’t great, but Russia was giving SOMETHING, and Europe was giving nothing. I mean nothing. There were terms in their deal I wouldn’t give a dog. What did “They” choose? Their major trading partner, the one they are closest to, allies with, and can’t socially or geographically escape? Nope, they chose Europe. And what did Europe do, give them a better deal than expected, help them out?
Nope,
the country has been liquidated, everything nut and screw has been extracted, everything not moved is levered up 300:1. And they have probably ceased to exist as a country and a people, with 2M dead, and the women all sold into slavery.
Thus ever goeth Europe.
I’ve been hard on Canada recently as you’ve seen. And many of you are Canadians. And I’ve asked many times, “What is your plan, nationally, locally, personally, to save your nation from this bad end which at a minimum is a dead economy (Already) a loss of nationhood and identity (already) and possible nation-ending secession, which as Alberta leaves rather than dies, QC will leave as well, and the nation is islanded, broken in two?” But I’ve heard nothing. I didn’t expect a lot as it’s both a difficult question, and an aggressive way to pose it, but I expect like “Well, Ford will do X; this other thing won’t happen; we’re all happy if QC leaves; and we’re doing these things in our lives already with our neighbors, but whatcanyado?” But nothing. Not even that.
What’s worse, far worse, is, “But the United States Senators, Presidents, businessmen, people!!!…” Don’t care. Stop talking about us and looking to us for a second. What about YOU? We’re ALREADY fighting all that, every day, as you see, or it wouldn’t be IN the news. We’re fighting it. What are YOU doing?
It’s deceptive, but the constant contrast, is a way to do nothing, ever. It’s like Black Pilling x100. It’s “Daddy’s upstairs with my daughter again but I’m sure it’s okay tho”. It’s like hearing the house is on fire so you check your phone. Checking your phone is habitual. It’s soothing. It’s safe. It gives good feelz. The fire in the house is fresh, new, scary, disorienting, there is no good response to it. However, if you just keep pointing at us while YOUR house is on fire, y’all gonna die.
I can’t unmake that. Your situation isn’t all that bad yet. You have 20 years of complete suck, every option is the pits, but there’s no special event yet that can’t be undone. But those such events are carpet-bombing you right now. They’re all coming from Trudeau, Carney, Europe, and Globalists. And every one of them is clearly fabricated to kill every last one of you. So there’s your motivation. Please act. Let nothing the United States does or thinks ever pass your lips again until you act. Nobody cares what we do: that’s the hand you were dealt and have to win with now. So go win it.
But even as they go over the horizon, the lip of the waterfall is reached, not a flicker, not a peep.
“…But Trump>” was the last thing that was heard. He’s the reason we don’t have an army or an economy. Since 1990 before we knew his name.
“• Mark Carney Is Leading Canada ‘Right Over the Cliff’ (Victor Davis Hanson)
Others have the same idea. It’s not hard to come to. In fact, it’s unavoidable.
“You apparently don’t think that. You think if you lose your special $50 billion surplus relationship, or you might have to rearm, the choices that you’ve made on energy and immigration and economic policy prevent you from being competitive, and you need to be thus indirectly subsidized.” — VDH
If you missed it, this was the genesis of the “51st state” comment by Trump. They were of course shopping for any possible “Signaling” wins. ‘Coz like Ukraine, dey win the f—k out of that “Signaling”. The real economy and national situation not so much.
Trudope said “Hey Mr. Trump, you know, we’d really love to pay the rent this month, but we’ve come up short, you know? The problem is, we don’t have a military, an economy, we have all these tariffs between provinces, a bunch of other stuff, guy. So you see, we NEED these American subsidies, or we’ll collapse. So it’s simply IMPOSSIBLE for us to pay our fair share in trade, or NATO, or anywhere else.”
AND THEN TRUMP SAID, “Well that’s fine if you want to be the 51st State. We would have to subsidize you then. However, you want to be a sovereign country. That makes you “Not-Us” and “Not my problem.” MY job is to get the fair deal for the AMERICAN people, not everyone else. So make up your mind about whether you’re a nation, or a state and a mere extension of us. I’m not kidding and I’ll be waiting.”
OBVIOUSLY they pitched a tantrum about having to get off the weed and clean up their room or no allowance, and diverted the discussion elsewhere. But IT’S NOT RHETORIC. Why would it be? Trump is TOTALLY SERIOUS, as I often am when it sounds like I’m being hyperbolic or sarcastic. Why would I be? I live here where Irony and Reason are both dead. Jokes write themselves as “The Onion” is out of business, and “Not the Babylon Bee” has more type than the real Bee.
ARE YOU OR ARE YOU NOT A NATION? I don’t care which – either is fine, I’m not grinding you. But the house is burning down and you have to pick one. Being a nation means you need an Army and an independent viable economy like YESTERDAY. Like 25 years ago.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0MeHh3ikAAk (Canadian commentator)
“Why would President Trump ‘not’ strike back against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, knowing the drone attack on the Saudi pipeline would only worsen the oil issue? Well, you won’t read this anywhere else…. However, if Saudi Arabia shut down the east/west pipeline for a while (they just did), then the oil flowing to the Red Sea that ends up in Europe would be halted (it just was). Think about it. All of a sudden Europe cannot get oil from Mohammed bin Salmon. So, how does that change the dynamic of President Trump’s desired leverage toward Europe in his approach to bringing Russian oil back into the market.” –Sundance
They are all ALLIES.
They are all Allies AGAINST someone. Someone else.
And Oh My Lord, that’s SUNDANCE finally having Clue Phone sink in. Thank God.
No wonder Europe is going to level and extract every last ounce of Carbon from Canada’s shriveled husk like “The Dark Crystal”.
“[AI] – labs already face liability if they screw up, so incentives to release aligned models is already baked in”
Hahahahahaha! Robots and robotic cars taking any liability! That’s hilarious! CORPORATIONS taking any equitable liability cost! Have you SEEN the last 100 years, that is – Every day of your sorry life –??? No?
C’mon, you guys are the worst. If I ever see an CEO take responsibility I’ll do the chicken dance on 5th Avenue.
“if Dario Amodei truly believes frontier AI could end humanity, he has no business running Anthropic. Make it safe, shut the lab down,
Thus Sayeth every NORMAL person remaining on earth. You don’t know what you sound like, you dips—ts.
1. “This will kill us all!!!!!! 2. That’s why Ima keep going! 3. Gimme a trillion dollars.
“AI doomers should be held accountable for their doomsday claims. It’s made up… It’s irresponsible.”
I mean yes, as I say daily, but you should ALSO be held accountable. You CEOs are the least responsible people on the planet. As a general thing, YOU are always more my enemy than any doomer is. You DO things that are evil; Doomers are evil only because they do nothing.
…With Optimus Robots dancing and juggling. Whoops, we’re all going to die. Musk will be the one who kills us, exactly as everyone said. Every DOOMER said. (who then did nothing)
“• Zelenskyy Tells CBS Russia Drones Tried to Take Down His Airplane (CTH)
It’s CBS. Who ELSE are you going to have to joyfully print hilarious Cat-Armies-from-Outer-Space-Are-Invading headlines? I mean, the NYTimes and WaPo? The Telegraph? They already did and are busy.
Remember: CBS, owner of 60 Minutes whut never dun lied about nothing, no sirree.
“authorities confirmed that the drone had fallen and exploded about 160 km from Chisinau International Airport.”
So “A Drone existed in Europe”. Wow. There’s your smoking gun then. Did they get its passport?
“• The Road to Armageddon (Paul Craig Roberts)
The world is faced with two major war fronts, both of which are widening and could spin out of control.Not really. The key element is belief and non-trust. RUSSIA KNOWS it’s all fake. The US knows it’s all fake. A lot of the public know it’s all fake. Some are even sinking in that IRAN is all fake, as the CTH article above. So what flashpoint do you use if baseline of every event is “It’s fake” instead of “This is a real attack from our obvious and esteemed enemy”?
Every weapon system that Washington and NATO members said would not be sent were sent to Ukraine.”
That’s incredibly and irresponsibly not true. While we moved a lot in that direction which should be discussed in detail, um, NUKES are in that category? HIMARS are in that category? Jewish Space Lasers are in that category (Joking, but confirmed this week) Um, any number of MEN might have been sent? Where are they? No, you’re 100 miles over the line on that statement. That really matters.
“Russia and China are obviously world powers, but why Washington’s hegemonic concern with Iran, which is not?”
A great question you should answer deeply instead of taking the pre-planned bait created by MI6. Don’t be a sap.
“• FBI Agent Wanted To Criminally Investigate Elon Musk, Email Shows (ET)
It’s not a crazy accusation the Agent made. And Musk IS a criminal. (Stock manipulation among others, but there’s no clear law or evidence anywhere at that level and is a muddle of plausible actions). I can’t get excited. IS this probably a political hit and fishing expedition exactly as presented? Yup. Totally. But sorry, then don’t commit crimes. I don’t know what to tell you. Because EVERYTHING is a crime, the bad guys commit crimes, no one cares. The Good Guys cannot commit even tangential offsides and are preventing from fighting evil. Yes, this is bad.
Think of WWII: SHOULD you firebomb Dresden, be so bad at it you constantly or mostly hit civilian targets, flame-thrower guys to death in the Pacific, and nuke people? Morally no. Too bad!! As Patton said, the sooner the war is over and you surrender, the more of you survive. So don’t get up my nose about traffic violations in Paris as the US Army tanks drove through. Same here. And NO, I don’t like it, and NO, I don’t want to have to give my own side an inch toward evil. But You also have to stop ACTUAL evil when it’s on the march. You have to constantly demonstrate not that you’re perfect, but only that you’re a lot, lot better.
Not perfect. Better.
Seems everyone would let all life on earth be extinguished because it wasn’t perfect, so therefore couldn’t act. F that.
Heading For A Showdown https://drjohnsblog.substack.com/p/heading-for-a-showdown
Alex Krainer, Two systems are before the world, part 3 of 3 – The spectacular civilizational renaissance of China makes the case for national system of economy undeniable.
In our last report, I asserted that the conflicts we are witnessing in the world today stem from the clash between two systems of governance. Usually, this is presented as the clash between democracies and autocracies, but in truth, it is between the western colonialist system and anyone who rejects its demand for subjugation, be it Cuba, Venezuela, Russia, China, North Korea, Yemen or Iran.
The geopolitical manifestations of this conflict are easier to discern, but its roots stem from the two alternative systems’ economic foundations, which determine the nature and the conduct of the opposed systems. Western colonialism favors and seeks to impose the British free trade system. Nations that prefer independence and wish to chart a sovereign path of their development, prefer the national system of political economy, also known as the American System.
The national system seeks to stimulate domestic manufacturing, accumulate capital at home, and invest it into its society’s own development, infrastructure, education, research, innovation, culture, and other uses that raise the country’s living standards and quality of life.
By contrast, the British free trade system extracts wealth and concentrates it in the hands of a financier oligarchy and their largest corporate clients. Free trade entails removing all barriers to unobstructed worldwide flow of capital, always in pursuit of highest available returns. Any costs that reduce the returns on capital must be slashed, including social spending and protection of the environment.
Under the free trade system, nations are obliged to compete for investment capital by systematically depressing wages, job security, pensions, health care services, and education. Therefore, the British free trade system amounts to a competitive race to the bottom... [Chinese progress and methodology]…
..There are zero reasons for us to subordinate the future development of our societies to the failed ideological framework imposed by those who use it to systematically loot wealth from our economies and prevent them, like a parasite, from attaining their full potential in a way that benefits every member of the collective. The ideologues will screech, “socialism!!!” But by this time, the simple grasp of the obvious should suggest that if we want to transcend our present predicaments and build a better future, we need to reexamine our convictions and especially our certitudes. https://alexkrainer.substack.com/p/two-systems-are-before-the-world-850 This takes a long time to say that the CONTROL of the economy, and Command of levels of Profit-extraction are paramount to the powers that control the EU. They want complete control of the profit structures, and to blame it on Russia. President Vladimir Putin Explains Why NATO Wants a War Against Russia https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/09/13/president-vladimir-putin-explains-why-nato-wants-a-war-against-russia/#more-286955
EU Opens Door For Canada To Become Bloc’s First-Ever “Associate Member” https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/eu-opens-door-canada-become-blocs-first-ever-associate-member
Judge Napolitano, When War Comes Home: A Constitutional Warning
A failed war does not end when the drones stop flying. It creates a new danger: A government that refuses to admit defeat and a president who, having failed abroad, seeks muscular victories elsewhere.
The war against Iran is a case study in the limits of military power, the dangers of presidential overreach and the enduring wisdom of the Constitution’s separation of powers. It was unauthorized, unconstitutional, illegal, strategically incoherent and — by the standards by which wars must be judged — a geopolitical failure.
The American people were told that force would achieve clear objectives. Iran would be compelled to surrender. Somehow, American security would be enhanced. The region would become more stable.
Instead, the United States expended enormous resources, consumed scarce munitions, deepened regional instability and failed to produce the political outcome President Donald Trump promised. Senior military officials just last week warned him that extending large-scale operations risked exhausting critical military capabilities and weakening America’s ability to respond elsewhere.
The United States can destroy buildings, eliminate targets, deploy aircraft, ships, missiles, drones and troops anywhere on the planet. But war is not a video game in which the destruction of enemy assets automatically produces political surrender. War is a contest of wills, societies, culture and endurance.
And here is the constitutional question that should have been asked before the first bomb was dropped: Who gave the president the authority to begin this war? The Constitution did not. https://ronpaulinstitute.org/when-war-comes-home-a-constitutional-warning/ Iran War: Europe Oil and US Diesel Crunch Worsens; Tucker Exposes Massive Trump/Israel Bombing Campaign Right After Midterms; Experts Question Survival of Regimes in Saudi Arabia, Jordan
Strait of Hormuz vessel transits drop to 4, data shows – Preliminary shipping data shows vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz remaining in the single digits at four on Tuesday, down from seven a day earlier, Reuters reports. Citing preliminary figures, Reuters said a total of four vessels transited the waterway, with two exiting and two entering…
..Tucker Carlson has gotten to the bottom of why Trump was insisting the war with Iran would end right after the midterms. I am hoisting his tweet in full because I am sure he wanted it to be read widely:
According to an informed federal official, in the coming months the Trump administration plans to send a total of 40,000 Mark 84 and Blu-117 bombs to the government of Israel. Each bomb weighs 2,000 pounds. This appears to be the largest transfer of conventional explosive ordnance from the United States in modern history.
How big is this shipment? It amounts to 40,000 tons of bombs. For perspective, the largest American air raid of World War Two was the Eighth Air Force’s attack on Berlin in March of 1945. Combined, the 2,023 Allied aircraft involved dropped about 3,000 tons of bombs. That’s 7.5 percent of what Trump is sending to Israel. That same month, March of 1945, the US Army Air Forces began the single most destructive bombing raid in human history, Operation Meetinghouse over Tokyo. More than 100,000 Japanese civilians were killed. By the end of that operation, the US had dropped 1,600 tons of bombs. That’s four percent of what Trump is sending to Israel. World War Two ended five months later, when the US dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima. The shipment Trump is sending to Israel amounts to more than three times the destructive power of that nuclear explosion. There is no precedent for what the Trump administration is doing.
Nor is there a justification. The government of Israel is not fighting World War Two, or even a war. It is engaged in periodic skirmishes with a guerrilla force in Lebanon, and it is working to exterminate an unarmed civilian population in Gaza. Neither front requires modern 2,000-pound bombs.
An American-made Mark 84 has a destruction radius of half a mile. It releases a thermal wave the temperature of the surface of the sun. Within 100 feet of the explosion, rock melts and human flesh turns to vapor. The bomb collapses apartment buildings and leaves craters thirty-five feet deep. Until the war with Iran, the US military generally avoided using the Mark 84 in urban areas. It kills too many civilians.
For the Netanyahu government, that’s been the upside. In the weeks after October 7, the IDF dropped nearly six hundred 2,000-pound bombs on densely populated areas in Gaza, including on more than 100 officially designated civilian evacuation zones. The slaughter was so grotesque and embarrassing that for a moment the Biden administration paused a shipment of Mark 84s…
..By any definition, what the Netanyahu government has done in Gaza is genocide. The 40,000 new bombs the Trump administration is sending will be used to do the same in Lebanon… It is not an arms sale. It is a gift, funded by American taxpayers through the Foreign Military Financing program, an arrangement designed to disguise welfare as capitalism: Congress appropriates money to the executive branch, which transfers the cash to Israel to “buy” American-made weapons, in this case from General Dynamics. Politicians claim this is a win for America. Most voters have no idea they paid for it. The bill in this case is about $3 billion. Add that to the $352 billion the US Treasury has transferred to Israel since 1951.
How did this happen? The request for 40,000 new high-explosive civilian-killing bombs originated at the US Embassy in Jerusalem, which is run by Christian Zionist Ambassador Mike Huckabee and his aide David Milstein, who is the stepson of Fox News host Mark Levin. From there it moved to the State Department, where Marco Rubio enthusiastically approved it.
At this point, only four more people need to sign off before the bombs ship to Israel: Senators Jim Risch and Jeanne Shaheen, the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; and Congressmen Brian Mast and Gregory Meeks, the top two members of the equivalent House committee. All four are committed neocons. Collectively they’ve taken millions from the Israel lobby. In 2015, Brian Mast traveled to Israel to volunteer for the Israeli military. In 2023, Mast showed up in the House of Representatives wearing an IDF uniform...
..Americans, call or e-mail your Congresscritters and also your local TV station. They have political sway. https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2026/09/iran-war-europe-oil-and-us-diesel-crunch-worsens-tucker-exposes-massive-trump-israel-bombing-campaign-right-after-midterms-experts-question-survival-of-regimes-in-saudi-arabia-jordsn.html Dennis Kucinich (I called my Congressman), Massie’s Courageous Act Brings War Powers and Impeachment Before the House on Constitution Day
Eight Articles Charge Secretary Hegseth With Unauthorized War, Extrajudicial Killings and Abuse of Power. Call your Representative now. Ensure they vote for Impeachment. https://kucinichreport.substack.com/p/massies-courageous-act-brings-warA polite request: The House of Representatives voted on Sept. 15 to pass a war powers resolution that calls for President Donald Trump to end U.S. military action against Iran. https://www.zerohedge.com/political/house-votes-pass-iran-war-powers-resolution
Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-16
The Saudi export story escalated from “pipeline down” to “no crude for Europe until November” – Yanbu loadings suspended, the YASREF refinery reportedly struck, and Aramco scrapping cargoes outright while European differentials blew out to premiums above $18 over Dated Brent.
The Fed decides today with a hike ~92% priced, one session after the worst 20-year auction on record and a 10Y close at 5%.
New overnight: Ansarallah claims a Saudi F-15SA shot down over Marib, the Pentagon IG’s first Iran war report landed with “hundreds” of destroyed structures, and the Senate killed the crypto Clarity Act 49-50.
Saudi Arabia is effectively out of the European crude market until November. Yanbu loadings suspended (KobeissiLetter, idreesali114), September cargoes cancelled (zerohedge), and a European lifter reportedly told no Saudi cargoes at all until November (HormuzLetter). European grades bid at premiums in excess of $18/bbl over Dated Brent in the S&P Global window (chigrl).
The YASREF refinery at Yanbu was reportedly struck – the 400kbd Aramco-Sinopec JV, one of the Red Sea’s largest diesel exporters, with two NASA FIRMS heat anomalies inside the fence (HormuzLetter, MarioNawfal). Yanbu is the terminus of the East-West pipeline, i.e. the route that exists precisely to avoid Hormuz...
..Saudi exports: Yanbu suspended, Aramco cancels to Europe, East-West pipeline restart “days” per Washington – Satellite reads point to a coordinated hit on multiple pump stations, not one – Station 9 badly damaged, Station 8 possibly also (MarioNawfal); one account claims all stations along the route were targeted (SprinterPress).
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright says the line – 4-5 mb/d, roughly 4-5% of global supply – could restart within days (DeItaone, zerohedge). The market is not pricing that.
Aramco’s Abha bulk plant burning after drone/missile strikes (clashreport, JoshYoung)...
..US diesel set a record and Washington is now openly discussing an export ban. Senate Majority Leader Thune “open to considering” it (JavierBlas, zerohedge) with diesel at $6.26-6.27/gal (KobeissiLetter, Hedgeye). Russia, the #2 exporter, already halted...
..Yemen: Ansarallah claims a Saudi F-15SA over Marib as Riyadh runs the “drone at Mecca” line – The shootdown claim is multi-source but uncorroborated by Riyadh: F-15 downed in Marib (MenchOsint), F-15SA over Marib (imetatronink), while IRIB placed it in Al-Jawf (ME_Observer_). Province claims diverge; treat the location as unsettled.
Saudi air defence says it intercepted a drone south of Mecca, calling the holy sites “a red line” (HibaNasr, _AhmedQuraishi, zerohedge).
The debunking is the story here. Timings don’t reconcile – sirens ~12:25 Mecca time, coalition says 18:50 (MenchOsint) – and the video circulating as evidence shows Al-Masjid an-Nabawi in Medina, from a September 2025 Yemeni projectile intercepted over Saudi Arabia (MenchOsint).
Why it matters beyond optics: the same “they’re targeting Mecca” framing was used in 2018 to recruit and motivate Sudanese troops for frontline deployment in Yemen, per captured-soldier testimony (Almutawakkil560); one read is that the current version targets Pakistani public opinion (MazMHussain)...
..Iran war: the damage ledger goes public – Pentagon IG, CBS photos, CBO’s $38bn – The DoD Inspector General’s first Iran war report says “hundreds” of buildings and structures on US bases in the Middle East have been destroyed (DanDePetris, zerohedge), alongside a munitions shortfall and supply-chain bottlenecks.
CBS published photos sent by active-duty personnel on condition of anonymity: “This is major damage to our bases that hasn’t been communicated to the American public… We’re standing there with our eyes closed getting punched in the face” (CBSNews, zerohedge, imetatronink).
CBO: $38bn in the first five months, with annual PCE inflation projection now 0.5pp higher for Q1 2027 (DeItaone)...
..Amazon Web Services says its Bahrain facility and one of three UAE hosting zones are beyond restoring after Iranian strikes (zerohedge, mazzenilsson). Cloud infrastructure as a war casualty is new.
Domestic politics turning: 7 Republicans joined Democrats on an Iran war resolution (wmiddelkoop), and Massie read articles of impeachment against Hegseth on the House floor (RepThomasMassie, zerohedge). Vance says the war enters a “much different phase” (zerohedge).
Separately, a reported $2.8bn / 40,000 2,000-lb bomb package for Israel – 20,000 MK-84s, 20,000 BLU-117s, plus 20,000 I-2000 penetrator warheads (John_Hudson, hehe_samir, TuckerCarlson).
Diplomatic churn in the background: an Iranian delegation landed in Riyadh (Megatron_ron), Araghchi flies to Beijing today (MenchOsint), and a GCC-Iran-Oman meeting on Hormuz was announced then cancelled (Kathleen_Tyson_)...
..Russia-Ukraine: the energy truce lasted 22 hours; Syzran burns, Vilkhuvatka falls – Trump’s claimed energy ceasefire collapsed overnight over added Ukrainian conditions; both sides resumed immediately (MilitarySummary). One trader literally stopwatched it at 21 hours 59 minutes (DarioCpx).
Ukraine struck the Syzran refinery in the Volga region – primary crude unit and tank farm hit – plus a drone plant in Taganrog (chigrl). Peskov calls the truce “a good idea” without saying Russia agreed to it (JavierBlas)...
..Civilian cost, layer one: Russia has struck 16 gas stations in Kyiv to trigger a fuel shortage in the capital (MilitarySummary); over 500 locomotives destroyed or damaged, with Kyiv asking allies to finance 1520mm-gauge replacements (KyivIndependent). Russia also claims rail infrastructure hits in western Ukraine (zerohedge).
The drone race is shifting against Kyiv: interceptor tests in July failed against jet-powered Gerans (dana916), and Russia may field 500-750 km/h low-cost cruise missiles within ~6 months (wartranslated).
Escalation rhetoric hardened: Patrushev says Poland “will cease to exist in 2-3 days” in a conflict with Russia (yarotrof), with the Kremlin reportedly signalling full-arsenal use (thesiriusreport). Moscow also flagged “real risks” over Finland joining the French-led nuclear deterrent initiative (zerohedge)...
..AI and crypto: Clarity Act dies 49-50, OpenAI shops $1.2T, Oracle’s $288bn sits off the books – The crypto Clarity Act failed cloture 49-50, with Republicans Collins, Hawley and Moran joining every Democrat (KobeissiLetter, zerohedge, WatcherGuru). BTC broke below $75,000 with $250m of longs liquidated in an hour per demontraderr.
OpenAI weighing a round at a $1.2T valuation before IPO, per FT (zerohedge) – six months after raising $122bn (MaartenVerheyen).
The number of the day nobody is pricing: Oracle’s 10-Q discloses $288bn of data-centre lease commitments not yet commenced, on 15-19 year terms, against $303bn of total assets – and Oracle is the tenant, so it’s rent owed regardless of AI velocity.
NVIDIA’s $105bn and Broadcom’s $29bn are guarantees with different triggers; adding the three together produces a meaningless figure (shanaka86)...Quiet structural datapoint: OpenRouter users spent more on OpenAI than Anthropic models last week, the first time in 2.5+ years (OpenRouter). https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-16 Fed Hikes Rates For First Time Since July 2023, Signals 1 More Hike In 2026
As the market expected, The Fed hiked rates by 25bps (for the first time since July 2023) despite a trend lower in CPI over the last three months.
Today’s decision was unanimous and the ‘Dots’ signal one more hike in 2026.
The Fed members increased their GDP outlooks, lowered their unemployment forecasts, but hiked their inflation outlooks. https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/fomc-41Gold & Geopolitics, Daily digest: 2026-09-17
The big delta is the Fed: Kevin Warsh’s first policy move as chair was a 25bp hike, unanimous 12-0, with the dots pointing to another before year-end – the first hike since July 2023, delivered into a diesel crisis and seven weeks before the midterms.
Trump responded within hours by demanding rates of “1% or less” and threatening to halt trade with Europe if Canada takes the EU’s associate-member offer.
In Yemen, Ansarallah downed a Royal Saudi Air Force F-15SA over Marib and hit Aramco’s Yanbu complex, while Reuters reporting surfaced a quiet US-Houthi understanding in Muscat that leaves Riyadh on its own...
..Oil: Riyadh promises “half the pipeline in days” while Shanghai trades $30 over WTI – Saudi Arabia says it can restore ~50% of East-West pipeline capacity within days, which knocked crude lower (zerohedge, zerohedge). Energy Secretary Wright confirmed three pumping stations were hit and floated using the DPA to expand refining capacity (zerohedge).
Brett Erickson, quoted in the Washington Post, supplies the part the headline skips: satellite imagery shows three stations hit, and the Houthis have deliberately not struck the line harder – “the real death knell will be getting it repaired to 95 percent, then striking again” (BrettErickson28)...
..Escalation texture around NATO: Lavrov warns a war with NATO would be “very short” (zerohedge), a Russian frigate fired flares at a Danish helicopter and Copenhagen summoned the ambassador (zerohedge), and the DOJ accused a Russian intelligence ring of plotting killings on US soil (zerohedge)...
..Hackers dumped the contents of a Flock camera: software explicitly detecting people rather than just plates, 1.6 million images logged in 21 days, and the decryption key stored on the device – contradicting the vendor’s claims (jsrailton). https://no1sdailydigest.substack.com/p/daily-digest-2026-09-17Gaza Hospital Generators Fail as Israel Restricts Oil, Fuel and Spare Parts https://www.palestinechronicle.com/gaza-hospital-generators-fail-as-israel-restricts-oil-fuel-and-spare-parts/
Palestinian Detainee Gives Birth in Israeli Prison after Six Months without Charge
Dana Joudeh, 35, gave birth to a baby girl while held in Israeli custody after spending six months in administrative detention without charge or trial.
The Detainees Commission said Joudeh endured her pregnancy without adequate medical and health care and held Israel responsible for her and her newborn’s safety.
Joudeh’s administrative detention order expires Tuesday, when she and her newborn are expected to be taken from the hospital to a checkpoint for release. https://www.palestinechronicle.com/palestinian-detainee-gives-birth-in-israeli-prison-after-six-months-without-charge/ Dana Joudeh: Palestinian female detainee gives birth behind Israeli bars
Dana, from the town of Iraq al-Tayeh in the Nablus governorate, was arrested while pregnant and spent much of her pregnancy in prison under harsh health and humanitarian conditions before giving birth behind bars.
She was not released until after delivering her baby. Israeli occupation authorities released her that night, after which she was transferred to Istishari Arab Hospital in Ramallah for medical care. https://english.palinfo.com/reports/2026/09/15/370199/
[See picture at link]Ramla jailers physically and sexually abuse Gaza detainees https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/14/370144/
‘Erasing Palestinian Presence’: B’Tselem Details Israel’s West Bank Project https://www.palestinechronicle.com/erasing-palestinian-presence-btselem-details-israels-west-bank-project/
LIVE FOOTAGE: IDF soldiers throw grenades over the West Bank border to kill children and women. How is this not considered terrorism? https://x.com/NewsTurko/status/2099039627797828012
Settlers rampage across W. Bank, targeting Palestinians, homes https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/13/370065/
Israel advances 153 West Bank settlement plans since start of 2026 https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/14/370105/
Gaza’s farming sector nears collapse as war leaves only 4% of farmland accessible https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/14/370134/
Israeli Attacks Kill Two, Wound 25 as Gaza Hospitals Face Paralysis https://www.palestinechronicle.com/israeli-attacks-kill-two-wound-25-as-gaza-hospitals-face-paralysis/
They can never return: Israeli culture minister vows to revoke citizenship of Gaza documentary filmmakers
Venice award-winning documentary NAZA examines killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, features testimonies from Israeli soldiers, intelligence officers https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israeli-culture-minister-vows-to-revoke-citizenship-of-gaza-documentary-filmmakers/4056223 Israeli Forces Raid Palestinian Journalist’s Home as West Bank Attacks Intensify
Israeli occupation forces raided Palestinian journalist Ali al-Samoudi’s home in Jenin, assaulted his son and gave the 59-year-old journalist one hour to surrender.
Raids continued across Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya, Tubas, Ramallah and occupied Jerusalem, while Israel maintained a curfew in a Hebron neighborhood.
Illegal Israeli Jewish settlers attacked Palestinian homes and agricultural land around Nablus and Ramallah, amid a broader escalation that included 3,488 settler attacks in the first half of 2026. https://www.palestinechronicle.com/israeli-forces-raid-palestinian-journalists-home-as-west-bank-attacks-intensify/Portugal Says Israel Undermining Palestinian State Through Settlement Expansion https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5318246-portugal-says-israel-undermining-palestinian-state-through-settlement-expansion
Norway and 11 Western countries to criminalize trade with W. Bank settlements https://english.palinfo.com/news/2026/09/14/370119/
China very clearly, expressly, hilariously can NOT do that.
China is in a lot of trouble in its own self. First they’re having a non-stop rolling coup and Civil War. Then we’d cut off all their food and oil in a second.
Nor is there any need for either. There’s literally no reason for either China or the U.S. to cut each other off except to create an unnecessary nuclear world war Europeans like Varufakis desire. We can all get rich and get our feet back under us instead.
However, if we all want to get rich or are in crisis, we can all easily shut off Europe instead. They don’t want a stable Strait of Hormuz: that’s okay, I don’t care. They want to pay $1000 instead of $100 for LNG, okay, sounds great to me. They want to try to pay $1 instead of $100 for Uranium from Africa, good luck! All Africa has to do is sell it to China and the U.S. instead. THEY are the only ones who don’t matter because they import everything.
Cut them off and more for us. No diesel shortage overnight, natural and liquid gas prices drop all over the United States. What’s the downside? IS there any? I can’t think of one.
Given the above which is consensus fact, which is the Empire? Europe who wants free gas, free oil, free military, free uranium?
Norway proposes 3 years’ imprisonment for trading with Israeli settlers https://www.arabnews.com/world/norway-proposes-3-years-imprisonment-for-trading-with-israeli-settlers-3001697
Israeli regime shells southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh district https://en.mehrnews.com/news/247703/Israeli-regime-shells-southern-Lebanon-s-Nabatieh-district
Israel uses Lebanese civilians as bargaining chips https://israelpalestinenews.org/israel-uses-lebanese-civilians-as-bargaining-chips/
Katz: Israeli Army Will Eliminate Anyone Approaching South Lebanon Ridge – Netanyahu vows Israel will continue to destroying ‘terror infrastructure’ https://news.antiwar.com/2026/09/14/katz-israeli-army-will-eliminate-anyone-approaching-south-lebanon-ridge/
Yemeni forces release 39-min footage from wide-scale military op. – Yemen’s Military Media released footage from a wide-scale military operation, showing the recapture of positions and an ambush on 10 military vehicles. https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/yemeni-forces-release-39-min-footage-from-wide-scale-militar
Houthis Issue Video Of Saudi F-15 Shootdown, As Ground Clashes Intensify In Yemen https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/houthis-claim-saudi-jet-shootdown-blast-mecca-drone-reports-fabrications-lies
Simplicius, Experts Declare Fuel Crisis Imminent as Global Wars Choke Out Supply https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/experts-declare-fuel-crisis-imminent
Saudi Oil Output Drops to Zero https://www.globalresearch.ca/saudi-oil-output-drops-zero/5940441
1) It’s Iran’s fault: Fuel prices to “drop-like-a-rock” when Hormuz war ends: Trump says US could stay in Iran and keep oil, like Venezuela deal
Speaking at the Irish Open golf championship, Trump added that the price of gasoline would “drop like a rock” once the Iran war ended.
Turmoil in the Middle East has roiled oil markets, with oil traders expecting prices to rise again on Monday after an attack on a Saudi oil pipeline.
Trump said that he would only make the “right deal” and wouldn’t do one that was “no good,” adding that Iran was “calling constantly” for peace talks — an assertion that Tehran has dismissed in the past.
But the president also introduced another option: stay engaged with Iran. He drew a parallel with the US deal in Venezuela, announced in August.
“We’ll ultimately get out (of Iran), unless we decide to stay and keep the oil like Venezuela,” Trump said, adding that the US revenue from Venezuela has “paid for the war many times.” https://www.arabnews.com/middle-east/trump-says-us-could-stay-in-iran-and-keep-oil-like-venezuela-deal-3001586 2) It’s Ukraine’s fault: Price Of Diesel – Lack Of Foresight Is Catching Up With Trump
Trump however would of course never admit that any of his actions is to blame for the lack of fuel supplies. A convenient culprit has been found by blaiming Ukraine:
Bessent partly blames Ukraine for ‘energy shock’ pushing up prices – The Hill, Sep 2 2026
“We are going through an energy shock right now due to both the war in Ukraine, because Ukraine has decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets and refined properties, so that is creating upward price pressure on a global basis, and the conflict in Iran,” [Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday] said.
Trump calls on Zelensky to stop attacking Russian energy targets (archived) – Washington Post, Sep 13 2026
President Donald Trump on Sunday said he called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to ask him to “stop knocking out diesel fuel” targets in Russia, saying the attacks were contributing to a global shortage of the fuel.
“Mr. Zelensky has to do one thing. He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel, let them go after targets but not diesel fuel, because he’s causing a shortage of diesel,” Trump said, adding that there were “plenty other targets.” https://www.moonofalabama.org/2026/09/price-of-diesel-lack-of-foresight-is-catching-up-with-trump.htmlEnergy Truce In Shambles: Ukraine Strikes Russian Refinery Despite Trump’s Warning Amid Global Diesel Crisis https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/energy-truce-shambles-ukraine-strikes-russian-refinery-despite-trumps-warning-amid-global#google_vignette
It is “threat”, and “provocation”, not “deterrence”: Finland Joins France Nuclear Deterrence Push Bringing NATO Deterrence Closer to Russia. https://www.armyrecognition.com/news/army-news/2026/finland-joins-france-nuclear-deterrence-push-bringing-nato-deterrence-closer-to-russia#google_vignette
Oh, I see it was just a “car accident”, maybe a disfiguring one?: Boots on the Ground. British Army soldier killed in Ukraine https://michaelwalshwriter.com/2026/09/14/boots-on-the-ground-british-army-soldier-killed-in-ukraine/
Britons Disunite! Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland leaders unite behind independence push from UK
In the rare joint agreement, leaders call on Britain to prepare for constitutional change as Trump sparked a firestorm by publicly backing Irish reunification. https://courthousenews.com/scotland-wales-and-northern-ireland-leaders-unite-behind-independence-push-from-uk/ (Led by a politically moderate, pacifist lesbian) Far-right AfD puts pressure on German aid to Ukraine - Emboldened by its win in Saxony-Anhalt, the far-right Alternative for Germany wants the government to change its Ukraine and Russia policies. Berlin is staying the course, but support is fading — especially in the east. https://www.dw.com/en/afd-far-right-germany-ukraine-russia-war-aid/a-79257524
Germany’s AfD National Support Hits Historic High; CDU Slumps To Record Low
A new poll in Germany has delivered yet another shocking blow to the political establishment. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has reached 30 percent for the first time while stretching its lead over the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) to 10 points, with the Union reaching a historic low of just 20 percent. In addition, another poll has also put the CDU even lower, at 18 percent. https://www.zerohedge.com/political/germanys-afd-national-support-hits-historic-high-cdu-slumps-record-low (“Penny-pinching pacifist lesbian”, then?) Ukrainians must leave Germany – AfD co-leader
Alice Weidel mentioned “Ukrainian men of military age” in particular, saying the burden of welfare payments has become “unsustainable” https://web.archive.org/web/20260913220437/https://www.rt.com/news/645657-ukrainians-must-leave-germany-afd-co-leader/ Russia Backs Cuba’s BRICS Bid Following New Delhi Summit
The Kremlin confirmed Moscow’s support for Cuba’s integration into BRICS as a partner country, following the bloc’s recent summit in New Delhi, where no further expansions of full membership were discussed. https://www.telesurenglish.net/russia-backs-cubas-brics-bid-following-new-delhi-summit/AI’s Power Demand ‘Like Adding Another Japan’: Goldman Highlights The 4 ‘T’s & 7 ‘P’s Constraining Supply https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/ais-power-demand-adding-another-japan-goldman-highlights-4-ts-7-ps-constraining-supply
Got water, food, fuel, medicines and cash? I worked at Google DeepMind. You should listen to the warnings about AI, Alex Turner https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/sep/14/google-deepmind-ai-warnings
Meryl Nass MD, News: Clarity Act fails. BioSecurity Lobbying. 4 Measles-associated deaths? Chris Martenson explores how we get out of the mess we are in. Trump’s stablecoin company (and the losses of investors while he made out well) seems to have been the final straw that killed the Clarity Act. https://merylnass.substack.com/p/news-clarity-act-fails-biosecurity
Steve Kirsch, & Jessica Rose Ph.D, Help us reach 50,000 signatures to repeal the 1986 vaccine law – If you can only take one action this year, this should be your top choice. https://kirschsubstack.com/p/help-us-reach-50000-signatures-to
What the Media Won’t Tell You About the Measles – Dr. Sina McCullough offers a parent’s guide to the real history of the measles https://www.themahareport.com/p/what-the-media-wont-tell-you-about
Nicolas Hulscher MPH will be testifying, BREAKING: Henry Ford Health Declines to Appear at Michigan House Oversight Hearing on Its Landmark Vaccinated vs. Unvaccinated Study
I may now be the only witness testifying tomorrow as Michigan lawmakers examine Henry Ford Health’s unpublished birth cohort study showing vaccinated children were far sicker. https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/breaking-henry-ford-health-declinesIsrael, Pfizer Knew COVID Vaccine Caused Fatal Heart Condition — But Waited Months Before Alerting Public
The authors of a peer-reviewed study published last week in EXCLI Journal concluded that Pfizer and Israel’s Ministry of Health knew in early 2021 about a significant “cardiac event” safety signal associated with Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine — but withheld the information from physicians and the public for several months. A significant number of Israeli government reports involving younger patients recorded the onset of “acute cardiac inflammation” within “days to weeks of vaccination.” https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/israel-pfizer-covid-vaccine-fatal-heart-condition-waited-months-alert-public-excli-study/ “Health Canada strongly recommends the removal of unnecessary DNA elements from the backbone of plasmids to be used for the manufacture of COMIRNATY vaccines for future SARS-CoV-2 variants.”
Now revealed: Canadian regulators wanted the undisclosed DNA out of Pfizer’s shots in 2023. Pfizer refused. Higher ups in government quashed the investigation. DNA contamination continues to this day. https://scoopsmcgoo.substack.com/p/health-canada-strongly-recommendsJessica Rose Ph.D. reviews: The Allison Inquiry – Four days of heartbreaking and necessary testimonies from Canadians https://jessicar.substack.com/p/the-allison-inquiry
eeewwww. A bargain at any price! /s
People will fight for their paycheck much more fiercely than they would fight for anything else.
Entrenchment undermines so many things.“Every weapon system that Washington and NATO members said would not be sent were sent to Ukraine.” (and Israel)
———–
The Road to Armageddon
September 15, 2026
Paul Craig RobertsWhat I have presented is the truth. But no awareness or discussion of this truth results or is possible in America or Western Europe. The powerful Israel Lobby has defined all truth unfavorable to Israeli expansion to be antisemitic. Unless they are retired, no professor, no foreign policy analyst, no government official or student can survive being labeled an antisemite. The power of the Israeli’s self-justifications for wars and genocide is extraordinary. There are only 7.7 million Jews in Israel; yet they control the discussion of the violence of which they are themselves responsible.
Read more …
————-
Why change the name of any relationships/partnership to
“Associate Member” ?
———–641 DRONES vs 157 DRONES: The War Reignites on Election Eve 🚀 Military Summary For 2026.09.17
Mid-term Electiins:
Carney, van lying, high diesel prices, courts OK’ing mail-in-vote fraud in blue states, AI scrares, RINOs & Mitch, are all connected to democrats regaining House and Senate seats.
Trump failed to clean up tĥe blue states ballots fraud.
The mid-term elections will be as honest as the 2020 elections were!
Canada:
Hard to defend when you have no rights.
about this time a year ago i was in surgery in HCA Largo having a TAVR heart valve installed.
i am perplexed by the gleeful calls for wanton destruction of life.
There are few places more apt for reflection than a bed in ICU at 2:00 A.M.i am ill equipped to have language to describe the senseless horror of the moment
Israel has been destroyed from within and from without before.
Tilt head and his delivery of bombs will only hasten The Modern State of Israel’s demise.“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Behold, your house is now yours, but is made desolate.”
Matthew 23:37-38AnsarAllah in Yemen: “We Will End the Saudi Blockade and Occupation”
Full interview with Hizam al-Assad, member of AnsarAllah’s Political Bureau, by Al-Mayadeen channel, September 10, 2026.Le Cri des PeuplesSep 10, 2026
Source: Al-Mayadeen ProgramsTranslation: resistanceaxis.substack.com
A Major Breakthrough on the Western Coast
The Instant Collapse of Pro-Saudi Forces
The Red Sea and the Security of International Shipping
Saudi-Emirati Rivalries on the Ground
The Iranian Axis and the Saudi Axis
The Next Step: Toward Lifting the Blockade
Presenter: From Al-Mayadeen, we greet you wherever you may be, dear viewers. Developments are accelerating, and more specifically on Yemen’s western coast, where the gains are not measured by the surface area of the ground alone, but by its position on the Bab al-Mandab route, from Hays to Al-Khokha to Al-Mokha via Al-Wazi’iyah — the Yemeni armed forces announce the extension of their control over the entire length of the western coast, encompassing the military camps of Khaled and Jabal al-Nar, alongside the sweeping of the islands facing it.
An advance that an intense campaign of Saudi strikes failed to stop. The spokesman for the Yemeni armed forces, Brigadier General Yahya Sari’, states that locally manufactured surface-to-air missiles forced a Saudi combat formation to withdraw from Ta’iz. In Al-Khokha, images from the Mohammed bin Zayed Hospital revealed another face of the retreat: wounded men abandoned without care by the Saudi-backed forces.
To what extent does this advance alter Riyadh’s calculations on the ground? And what does the approach of Sanaa’s forces toward Bab al-Mandab mean for the balance of power in the Red Sea?
In this segment of our field coverage, we are joined from the Yemeni capital by a member of the Political Bureau of the AnsarAllah movement, Mr. Hizam al-Assad. Welcome to the program, Mr. Hizam. We will also be joined during this program by retired Brigadier General and military and strategic expert Ali Abi Raad, from the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Let us begin with the vast developments on the ground on the western coast, following the liberation by the Yemeni armed forces of the districts of Hays and Al-Khokha, and of the coastal city of Al-Mokha, over an area exceeding 2,550 square kilometers. Rapid collapses within the ranks of the Saudi-backed forces, despite intensive air support. A report from our correspondent in Yemen, Ahmed Zabiba.
A Major Breakthrough on the Western Coast
Ahmed Zabiba (voice-over): Military and strategic upheavals are taking place on the western coast fronts in Yemen, where Sanaa’s forces have succeeded in liberating the districts of Hays and Al-Khokha, in addition to establishing full control over the coastal city of Al-Mokha, according to concordant field and media sources. An achievement on the ground that allowed Sanaa to recover more than 2,550 square kilometers, following the rout and flight of the forces loyal to Saudi Arabia, which suffered massive collapses within their brigades, despite Riyadh launching some 100 airstrikes on all fronts in an effort to support them.
Abid al-Thawr, Yemeni military expert (on screen): The hasty retreat and rapid defeat of the enemy forces are what led us to expand our offensive operations and to sweep the areas they occupied, until we reached Hays and proceeded to sweep the entirety of Al-Mokha, Al-Khokha and Hays, cutting off all the supply routes and the main arteries that the Saudi enemy had been striving to keep open between Ta’iz and Al-Mokha. And praise be to God, by the grace of the Most High, our forces have established full control.
Ahmed Zubayba (voice-over): With the widening scope of the Yemeni armed forces’ military victories and their ability to confront concentrations of Saudi troops east of Al-Jawf and in the governorates of Ta’iz, Al-Hudaydah and Al-Bayda, observers believe that the gains on the ground give the Yemeni people strength and resilience to wrest away their rights.
Mohammad Mansour, Yemeni political analyst (on screen): Saudi Arabia is in a great impasse. It must withdraw its feet and hands from Yemen and from Yemeni sovereignty. It has no other choice: either it accepts this, or it will have to bear even higher costs, because Yemen has opened the chapter of recovering all of its rights.
Ahmed Zubayba (voice-over): The rapid developments undoubtedly impose a new geographic and political reality across the entire Yemeni map, strengthening the balance of power in Sanaa’s favor, both on the ground and at the negotiating table, and placing Riyadh before a new phase that forces it to reconsider the whole of its calculations, both military and political.
Ahmed Zubayba (on screen): With the continuation and intensification of the fighting on the ground, Sanaa has, in the battle for the western coast, foiled Riyadh’s wager on its loyal forces, thereby imposing a geographic and military reality that could constitute a window opening onto a new political momentum, or onto further confrontations. Ahmed Mohammed Zubayba, Sanaa, for Al-Mayadeen.
Presenter: Dear viewers, we open this discussion with Mr. Hizam al-Assad. Mr. Hizam, welcome back to the program. What is the military and political objective that Sanaa seeks to consolidate through this advance — this great advance that has taken place in the region of Yemen’s western coast?
Hizam al-Assad, member of AnsarAllah’s Political Bureau, Sanaa: May God protect you. I greet you and the dear viewers, and we give thanks to God the Most High for the great victory He has granted our people at the hands of our armed forces.
In truth, these regions are Yemeni regions, and it is the right of the sons of the Yemeni people, represented by their armed forces, to recover them and to liberate them from the grip and occupation of Saudi Arabia. And indeed, God the Almighty and Most High has enabled our armed forces to liberate these vast lands, whose surface area is perhaps comparable to that of many countries of the Gulf or of the region.
And there is indeed a very, very great strategic importance concerning the western coast region in general, and the region of Al-Khokha, the region of Hays, as well as the region of Al-Mafqa up to Dhabab and Miyyun, as well as the Yemeni islands in the Red Sea. These areas are of very great importance, both from a geopolitical standpoint and from the standpoint of what the great powers were counting on in order to subdue and bring the Yemeni people to heel. And also in terms of what this land holds, notably because of the nature and composition of its population, which rejects the invader and the occupier.
Moreover, there was an attempt on the part of the Saudi regime to create a form of social dissociation in these regions, whether through their “Daeshization,” or through the exacerbation of many regional, sectarian and confessional particularisms, as well as many issues and problems it raised. But by restoring the authority of the state there, by liberating them, harmony among the sons of the Yemeni people will certainly be restored.
As we observed when the Yemeni army entered these regions, there was an immense welcome, an overflowing joy, from the descent of the army from the Al-Kadaha area to Hays, then Al-Khokha, and so on all along the coast, in Yakhtul before that, in Wadi al-Malik, up to Al-Mokha and beyond. In all these regions, the sons of this dear country welcomed our armed forces with joy and were delighted to see them, all the more so as they had suffered injustice, oppression, occupation, arbitrariness, prisons — prisons that were overflowing with detainees unjustly imprisoned for having opposed this occupation and resisted this occupier.
Presenter: But what about the reports circulating that the armed forces of Sanaa and the other cities have an outside agenda and do not represent the Yemenis as a whole? How does Sanaa respond to those who hold this discourse?
Hizam al-Assad: First, the land is Yemeni. Second, the cause carried by the government of Sanaa and the administration or leadership of the country in Sanaa is a cause that concerns the Yemeni people as a whole: first, because the leadership’s demand to lift the blockade on the sons of the Yemeni people is not limited to a given geographic perimeter, and does not involve international or regional frameworks. This blockade does not even claim to raise matters of a UN nature: it is a blockade imposed by the Saudi enemy on the Yemeni people. It [Sanaa] therefore defends this logic and this demand, which is a just demand.
Likewise, the claims arising from the aggression imposed on our people for 12 years, and which continues — this is a legitimate demand, guaranteed and well-founded, for the sons of the Yemeni people as a whole, from north to south, including in the regions still under occupation. Thus the military dimension and the advance of our armed forces to wherever they have reached, along this long and extensive coastal littoral, are Yemeni lands, and there is no justification, no leverage allowing the enemy — whether Saudi or its instruments and mercenaries — to claim that there are outside agendas in this context, while they themselves speak from the hotels of Riyadh, in the name of bin Salman and the leadership of the Saudi enemy. Whereas our logic is the logic of the Yemeni people: the fighters are the sons of the Yemeni people, the sons of the armed forces; those who welcomed them in these regions are the citizens who were subjected to occupation, injustice, oppression, arbitrariness, prisons and all forms of torture. The cause is therefore a purely national Yemeni cause in this context.
Presenter: But Mr. Hizam, as you know, some are trying to frighten the Yemeni people — the inhabitants of the other regions of Yemen — in the face of this entry of the armed forces into these areas today. How can Sanaa reassure those who are afraid, especially in the context of attempts to spread fear? How can there be some form of reassurance? What do you say today to your brothers in Yemen, in the various governorates, about the entry of the Yemeni armed forces into these regions?
Hizam al-Assad: Obviously, this approach of intimidation and worry, and so on, naturally emanates from the trumpets of the aggression. But on the ground, on the social level, this worry does not exist. It is quite the opposite. Millions of people have seen this grand welcome from the inhabitants of the district of Al-Khokha, of Hays, and of Al-Mokha as well — this joyous welcome given to the heroes of our armed forces.
There is also the initiative of the leadership, embodied by His Excellency brother President Mahdi al-Mashat, who issued a decree of general amnesty for convicted persons, as well as his instructions to the government to go into the field to provide services, and also his directives to the local authorities of Hudaydah and Ta’iz to go into the field and provide services to the community.
Society is also familiar with the true, concrete model of our armed forces in many regions, in addition to the substance, content and methodology of our leadership in this context. This is why a state of harmony exists among the sons of the Yemeni people, and there is no divergence except in the enemy’s media and what it propagates. But in the real framework, there is nothing of the sort.
The Instant Collapse of Pro-Saudi Forces
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, to what extent was Sanaa surprised by the speed of the collapse of the lines on the opposing side in the western coast areas? Were there estimates in Sanaa that the fall, or the withdrawals, or the defeat would be this rapid for the other side? Or did the speed of the collapse exceed the expectations of the Yemeni capital?
Hizam al-Assad: We certainly had estimates that the occupier would fall in these regions from within, because of its arbitrary practices, its injustice, its arrogance toward the sons of the community. We estimated that the community would rise up and expel it. In reality, it governed these regions by force of iron and fire, through arrogant practices, through brutal and criminal security operations. So, when our armed forces approached the outskirts of the area, many regions collapsed. The withdrawal was in fact rapid and disorderly for the enemy.
It has no cause to defend. The enemy has no cause in Yemen, especially the local instruments, who carry out Saudi agendas for money. So, when the mercenary, whether a commander or a mere soldier, weighs on one side the thousand Saudi riyals or the hundred thousand Saudi riyals, and on the other his own head and his life, he will certainly lean toward surrendering and fleeing this fight. Withdrawing is undoubtedly safer for him, especially since he has no cause to defend. And at the same time, the occupier felt that this population environment massively rejected it. This is why this collapse was an accelerated and very rapid collapse. God the Almighty prepared the causes for it. And our armed forces certainly fought with bravery in the framework of the confrontation on many axes — notably at the beginning of this battle — and with that, God the Almighty enabled the achievement of this great victory.
The Red Sea and the Security of International Shipping
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, there were confirmations from Yemeni officials — here we are speaking precisely of Abd al-Aziz bin Habtour and Mohammed Abd al-Salam [AnsarAllah spokesmen] — who affirmed that international shipping will remain secure and that Sanaa does not target shipping, but is exercising its sovereignty over these regions. What is the message that Yemeni officials, more specifically in Sanaa, are sending today to the coastal states and to the international powers present in the Red Sea through these statements?
Hizam al-Assad: Of course, our message to the coastal states is the following: we are your partners in securing this important shipping corridor, in making it a free and normal passage, as it usually is. As for the countries of the world, they have no reason to worry. The military operation falls within its domestic framework, within the process of extending the authority of the state, lawful and legal, over our territories, of expelling the occupier and these renegade bands. It has no repercussion of any threatening dimension whatsoever on the security and safety of international shipping.
Presenter: How can they be reassured, Mr. Hizam, especially since for them things happened quickly and in a surprising manner? And among these countries, have there been contacts established with you — with the Yemeni government or with the AnsarAllah movement? Are there, for example, countries or officials in the region who have contacted you to find out about the reality of what is happening?
Hizam al-Assad: As for the world, it certainly has experience. At the level of the Yemeni people and our naval forces, they are a very important factor in securing and safeguarding the Red Sea. And there is also the experience acquired in the context of supporting our brothers in Gaza: there was no threat to any shipping vessel whatsoever, except during the period when Israeli vessels were targeted in this context, as part of the battle of support [for Gaza]. Our armed forces had what allowed them to turn the entire Red Sea into a strait, not only Bab al-Mandab. But the Yemeni people and the naval and armed forces have proven that they are a factor reinforcing the security and stability of this important shipping corridor, as well as the security and stability of the region and of the world in general. We are partisans of peace, not of war and unjustified violence, contrary to what the Saudi enemy tries to present as a stereotyped image of the Yemeni people, of our leadership, and of those who belong to this leadership and to this project, in approaches that perhaps aim to distort the image in order to present these mercenaries residing in some of its hotels as the legitimate government and as those relied upon to secure the Red Sea or the Bab al-Mandab strait, when in reality they have no anchoring in the reality on the ground. Only yesterday, the so-called “Minister of Defense” of the mercenaries was detained in the Dali’ region, in an area also under occupation. And many leaders of this clique, this group residing in hotels, do not even dare to travel.
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, some wonder to what extent the Yemeni armed forces will be able to expand geographically and extend their control over these vast strategic regions — we are speaking here of Bab al-Mandab, of the Greater and Lesser Hanish Islands, of Miyyun Island, and other strategic islands as you also know. Are the Yemeni armed forces capable, with their current capabilities, of extending their control over all these regions without allowing the Saudi-backed forces to attempt once again to retake control of these areas from which Sanaa has driven them out?
Hizam al-Assad: Of course, there is one piece of information that everyone must understand: we are the owners of the land. The armed forces are the owners of the land and come from this country. It is therefore not appropriate — and it would be inapt — to say that the armed forces are expanding and establishing their control: it is “our land,” “our country,” “our islands,” “our coasts.” Our armed forces also have, thank God, sufficient military capabilities not only to ensure stability and positioning in these regions and to consolidate their control there in a lasting and continuous manner, but also to face any internal or external challenge aimed at their presence, also aimed at the sovereignty of this country through occupation or otherwise.
[The interview with a retired Lebanese general, Ali Abi Raad, is inserted here, with detailed explanations using a map of Yemen; we are not translating it]
Saudi-Emirati Rivalries on the Ground
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, since His Excellency the General mentioned the Emirates — have you observed in Sanaa — have the Yemeni armed forces observed a divergence between the Saudi position and the Emirati position? And has this been reflected on the ground through what was clearly visible: first, the matter of the Minister of Defense classified in the Saudi camp, and second, we also saw in certain videos that forces linked to the Emirates were preventing the Saudi-backed forces from entering Aden? Have the Yemeni armed forces, has Sanaa, observed that there was a divergence between the Saudi position and the Emirati position? And how has this been managed?
Hizam al-Assad: Of course, there are many contradictions and also many, many clashes at the level of the extent of the dependencies. When we observe, at the level of what are called the forces of Tariq Afash [son of the former Saudi-backed president Ali Abdallah Saleh], that their allegiance or combat doctrine was oriented toward the Emirates, while their funding recently came from the Saudis. In addition to what are called the “Giants” forces, which are Wahhabi-Salafist forces gathered in Salafist centers, trained and tamed for terror, massacre and all criminal practices — their allegiance within the framework of combat doctrine and operational command fell under the Emirates, but their funding also came from the Saudis. This is why Saudi Arabia hastened to create military units parallel to these mercenary military sectors, that is to say what are called the Emergency Forces and the Homeland Shield Forces, which also have the same sectarian, Wahhabi-takfiri allegiance. But despite this, we saw, in the case of disaggregation mentioned by the General: the mercenary soldiers were abandoned in these regions while their commanders fled, leaving these soldiers — including the wounded in the hospitals in Al-Khokha and elsewhere — abandoned in intensive care and emergency wards, while their commanders took flight. Many soldiers were even abandoned in the barracks without having been informed of the withdrawal operations, left as prisoners. There was truly a state of disorder. And let us not forget also that there was a state of clashes among themselves, because there is no objective uniting them, other than the execution of the agendas of the funder, whether Saudi or otherwise.
The Iranian Axis and the Saudi Axis
Presenter: Did Saudi Arabia attempt to contact Sanaa, Mr. Hizam? And let us note that some have circulated information from the Reuters agency, as you know, that there was an attempt to present this offensive as not being purely Yemeni, but coordinated with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Some have even gone so far as to say that there were officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps present with the Yemeni armed forces. How do you respond to this? First, did Saudi Arabia make contact or attempt to contact Sanaa? And second, how do you respond to those who say that this was not a purely Yemeni action, but coordinated with Iran with the presence of Revolutionary Guard officers?
Hizam al-Assad: Of course, talk of the presence of Revolutionary Guard officers in Yemen — this is a discourse that invites laughter and mockery of whoever holds it. The Saudi regime knows that the armed forces reached, by themselves, deep into Saudi territory. It is also evident and manifest that we have prisoners of many nationalities — Saudi, Sudanese, and other nationalities. So has the world seen or observed a single Iranian soldier or a single person from Iran in the context of any military dimension? Certainly not. This is why it tries to justify its failure and its defeat, sometimes through the Islamic Republic, sometimes through Hezbollah, and even before that, in the six previous wars [against Yemen], it spoke of Muammar Gaddafi — it talks a great deal and casts its failure onto the countries of the world, when the heart of the problem lies in its aggression, in its blockade of the Yemeni people, in the hardships of the sons of Yemen due to this ongoing aggression for 12 years, and in what it has caused and accumulated in terms of humanitarian aftermath and repercussions, and in the level of suffering it has raised for the Yemeni human being. This is why the Yemeni people mobilized in this context.
Also, whenever a rupture, a defeat, occurs for it or for its instruments, Saudi Arabia always hastens to brandish the scarecrow of Iran. If it truly had hostility toward Iran, Iran is within its reach. But it would not even venture to confront it officially in these contexts, nor to accuse Iran. But it tries to circulate these arguments among its “flock” through its trumpets, and also tries to save face by claiming that it was not defeated by the Yemeni people, but by great powers such as Iran and others. But in reality, it is this Yemeni people, with its leadership, with its sons, with its armed forces.
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, before I return to General Ali Abi Raad, you mentioned that the Yemeni armed forces had prisoners of several nationalities. Is there any published information, or do you, Mr. Hizam, have data on the nature of these nationalities? That is, which Arab or foreign nationalities, and precisely which countries? Do you have data on this subject?
Hizam al-Assad: I am not speaking of the most recent period, this last one. We have Sudanese and Saudi nationalities from previous battles. As for recently, I do not have a precise account regarding the nature and nationalities of the prisoners currently held. But what I do know is that there is indeed a large number of prisoners among those who were abandoned by their commanders, whether takfiris or others. And there was also, thank God, the liberation of prisoners of the Yemeni army, in addition to the liberation of many prisoners unjustly and arbitrarily imprisoned by the Saudi regime and its instruments in these regions. In addition to what the armed forces acquired through the infrastructure left behind, whether in Miyyun or elsewhere, which have become like military bases. And certainly, this is thanks to God the Almighty and Most High, and it could not be otherwise but that the right should return to its rightful owners.
[Untranslated exchanges with General Ali Abi Raad]
·The Next Step: Toward Lifting the Blockade
Presenter: Mr. Hizam al-Assad, in the final question of this program — unfortunately time has caught up with us quickly, time has passed swiftly in this program — what about the next stage for Sanaa, for the Yemeni armed forces? Announcing a halt to the confrontations and a halt to operations after the consolidation of control? Or are there other objectives perhaps on the coast or in other regions?
Hizam al-Assad: Of course, we have a trajectory within the framework of operations imposing the equation of “blockade for blockade” and “escalation for escalation,” and this is our primary orientation. And had the Saudi enemy not sought to disrupt this trajectory and break this equation by sending its instruments, whether on the western coast or in certain eastern areas that saw some skirmishes, whether in Al-Jawf or Ma’rib, our trajectory is clear: to wrest away the legitimate Yemeni rights, and to break the blockade imposed on our country by the Saudi enemy. This is a trajectory that can intensify, and perhaps the Saudis will yield to what is right in this framework and spare themselves catastrophes, all the more so as we of course have a leadership ready to pursue this trajectory until the objectives are accomplished — objectives that are legitimate and declared, concerning the sons of the Yemeni people as a whole.
And on the other fronts, each matter has its own discussion. When our armed forces face any escalation or any attempt to disrupt the reality, or to blur the equations — the “blockade for blockade” equation, as Saudi Arabia has tried to provoke in the past — our armed forces will certainly confront it with firmness along this trajectory. And our armed forces certainly possess, thank God the Almighty and Most High, military capabilities they have accumulated, an advanced military industry acquired within the framework of advanced technological military developments, from hypersonic missiles down to the pistol bullet, 100% locally manufactured, in addition to the human cadres who, thank God, have succeeded in forming a powerful army, capable of protecting this country and protecting this people.
And today certainly, the ball is in the court of the Saudi regime, and it must yield to what is right and cease its aggression and lift its blockade on the Yemeni people, and hand over to the sons of the Yemeni people the rights they are owed because of the ongoing aggression against our country. This is an unjustified aggression that has lasted 12 years, and these are just and legitimate demands.
Presenter: Mr. Hizam, the time for this program has run out, but I would like an answer in 30 seconds if possible: what is the secret of this calm observed in Sanaa on the media level? A great advance, the whole world is talking about it, and we observe calm and restraint in the handling of these developments. Why? What is the purpose? Was it deliberate? In 30 seconds.
Hizam al-Assad: Of course. First, our trust in God the Almighty and Most High, and in the justice of the cause. And our people also have great confidence in the leadership and in our armed forces. And noise serves no purpose, because it is reality and the ground that impose the variables and the equations. Not media noise.
Presenter: Thank you very much indeed, Mr. Hizam al-Assad, for being with us on this program. Thank you also to you, His Excellency General Ali Abi Riad — you will certainly have other appearances with us in this coverage, on the screen of Al-Mayadeen, for all these developments. Our greatest thanks to you, dear viewers, for following us. See you soon.
On the Brink of an All-Out Regional War in Southwest Asia
Dennis SmallSep 16, 2026
On the Brink of an All-Out Regional War in Southwest Asia
The U.S. is on the brink of an all-out war. Shown here damage to U.S. Military airplane. Credit: CC/Tasnim News Agency
With the Sept. 10-13 surprise seizure of control of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait by the Houthis, which controls passage from the Indian Ocean into the Red Sea and from there to the Suez Canal, another huge portion of global sea traffic has been disrupted, if not stopped altogether. There is scrambling in capitals around the world over how to address the new crisis situation.Bab al-Mandeb is one of the busiest maritime chokepoints in the world, with almost 9% of all global seaborne trade passing through it, including 20% of both cars and containers and some 15% of crude and refined oil products. Add to that the effect of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and the near-total stoppage of Russian and Ukrainian grain and fertilizer exports through the contested Black Sea, and the shape of a meltdown of massive proportions of the world’s physical economy begins to come into focus.
The war party crews in Washington, London, and Tel Aviv have leapt into immediate action. US Centcom confirmed that Adm. Brad Cooper called an urgent closed-door meeting in Germany of the military chiefs of staff of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and numerous Gulf states, to discuss military steps for reopening Bab al-Mandeb, including Israeli “offers to help” Saudi Arabia against Iran—who are allies of the Houthis. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham is also considering jumping into the fray with military “help.”
This is a recipe for generalized warfare throughout Southwest Asia—on Russia’s southwestern flank—in a strategic context in which the United States has just announced that it has begun an arms race in space, while introducing a change in nuclear doctrine to promote the use of tactical nuclear weapons for supposedly “limited” nuclear war—an oxymoron, if ever there was one.
But an alternative to the growing probability of nuclear war is also starting to come into focus.
The Sept. 12-13 BRICS summit more than held its own against London-Washington efforts to fracture that grouping, which represents half the world’s population, as did the SCO summit two weeks earlier. Serious discussions were held, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated, “regarding the creation of alternative payment platforms, settlement and depository mechanisms, a reinsurance mechanism, an investment platform, and a grain exchange.”
More is scheduled for September, including the crucial Sept. 24 meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump at the White House, where President Xi will continue to offer the U.S. the opportunity to work together on infrastructure and other major projects in the Global South, which would be beneficial to all parties. In preparation for that trip, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, telling him that Beijing is “willing to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with Iran, and safeguard Iran’s legitimate rights and interests.” This is a message that Xi is expected to deliver personally to Trump when they meet, in the face of American threats and demands that all nations must cut off economic ties with Iran as decreed by the Treasury Department’s Operation Economic Outcast. Xi will also present Trump with options for the peaceful resolution of the entire Southwest Asia crisis, and that of Ukraine as well.
Wang Yi also met on Sept. 16 with Celso Amorim, the Special Advisor to Brazilian President Lula, for related discussions. Brazil is a founding member of the BRICS, as are Russia, India, China, and South Africa. On his way to China, Amorim also stopped in New Delhi, the host of the latest BRICS summit, for strategic discussions with the Modi government.
When the United Nations General Assembly begins its annual high-level General Debate on Sept. 22, as is traditional, the opening speech will be delivered by the Brazilian President Lula. Useful alternatives to onrushing global warfare, options based on the concept that development is the new name for peace, could well be placed on the world’s agenda at that time, and in the deliberations that follow.
https://eir.news/2026/09/news/on-the-brink-of-an-all-out-regional-war-in-southwest-asia/
Thanks. Michael Reid, I read it all.
I noticed, in some pictures, that there were “soldiers” that were bare foot.Here is more information by Elfadil Ibrahim
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/saudi-arabia-houthi/
How Saudi Arabia’s anti-Houthi strategy crashed and burned
Eleven years after intervening in Yemen’s war, Riyadh may be forced to negotiate with Elfadil Ibrahim
Sep 17, 2026For a decade, Saudi Arabia’s Yemen policy has rested on the assumption that time, money and coercive force, patiently and strategically applied, would eventually produce enough leverage to subdue the Houthis, or at least force them into a settlement on Riyadh’s terms.
Over the last two weeks, that assumption has been tested more severely than at any point since 2015, when Saudi Arabia initially launched its military intervention to roll back Houthi control of the Yemeni capital Sanaa. It has not held.
Having seized strategically significant swathes of Yemen’s west coast on the Red Sea, the Houthis are now pressing towards Marib, the last major stronghold of forces loyal to the internationally-recognized government of Yemen, and the site of some of the country’s most important oil and gas facilities.
If losing the Red Sea coast was a blow to the government, losing Marib would be a decisive defeat. It would represent a loss of its last major population and revenue center in the north, and sever its remaining foothold near the capital. It would also open, for the Houthis, the road toward Shabwa and Hadhramawt — two energy-rich eastern provinces that have long been eyed by the Houthis, whose core demands include a slice of the oil and gas wealth these regions produce.
While the headlines tell the story of overwhelming Houthi strength, government forces have also managed some gains. They recaptured positions northwest of Marib and pushed back two major Houthi assaults last week. Advances were also made in western Taiz on Sunday.
Whether government forces can more consistently counterattack and hold ground, instead of collapsing in the face of pressure, is among the most important open questions in the war right now.
The evidence, however, points to structural problems in the anti-Houthi coalition. A detailed reconstruction of the Mokha battle, penned by Yemen analyst Ibrahim Jalal, highlights a Houthi–fabricated withdrawal order, spread by radio and SMS, using an AI-cloned commander’s voice. Those messages tore through a coalition force that lacked, in his account, a joint operations room actually linking the five formations defending the coast.
That detail lines up precisely with what Yemen’s own defense minister, Taher al-Aqili, had already conceded in an interview weeks earlier. As al-Aqili noted, the military “unification” effort since the United Arab Emirates’ withdrawal from Yemen last year has produced a common payroll and biometric ID system, but not the shared training or command structure that would enable the various factions fighting under the government’s umbrella to effectively fight as one force.
Riyadh consolidated the org chart by forcing Emirati forces out of Yemen late last year, reacting to a bold offensive by UAE-backed southern separatists who had seized key territory in the south and were preparing to declare independence. However, forcing out the UAE did nothing to consolidate the military itself, nor did it reconcile the clashing interests of the power brokers who comprise Yemen’s executive Presidential Leadership Council.
Riyadh’s setbacks in Yemen are followed by additional problems to the north. On Friday, Saudi Arabia’s own foreign ministry confirmed that the drones that knocked out its East-West pipeline — the artery carrying up to four percent of global supply away to the Red Sea — had launched from Iraq.
The timing, arriving in the same 72-hour window as the coastal collapse and a fresh wave of Houthi strikes on the Khamis Mushait airbase in the kingdom’s south, suggests coordination. The Associated Press reported in early September, citing Saudi and Iraqi officials, that Houthi emissaries had worked inside an operations room run by Iraqi militias to help plan and execute an earlier swarm attack on Saudi oil infrastructure in July.
That level of coordination was close enough that a Houthi fighter was reportedly among the casualties when the U.S. and Saudi Arabia struck back at the militias later that month.
As Iran-aligned groups around the region increase pressure on Riyadh, diplomacy between the Arab gulf states and Iran has hit its own wall. The Monday meeting in Oman between Tehran and the Gulf Arab states, which was meant to hash out a framework for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, was called off after Riyadh objected to language implying the strait isn’t an international waterway, leaving Saudi Arabia negotiating on two chokepoints with no resolution on either.
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Washington, meanwhile, has not been of much help. Roughly 200 U.S. military personnel are already in Saudi Arabia under a newly formed joint command, providing intelligence and targeting support rather than combat power.When President Donald Trump was asked directly on Saturday whether the U.S. would strike the Houthis on the kingdom’s behalf, he effectively said no. “The Houthis called us, and they let us know they don’t want to fight with us,” he said. “They don’t want me to go after them.”
It must be frustrating for Riyadh that Washington sees so little threat to its own core interests in Yemen, even though Houthi control of the Red Sea is itself now a driver of the very oil price spike that threatens the Republican party’s political fortunes in the upcoming midterm elections.
Riyadh’s other partners have offered even less support. Turkey and Pakistan, bound to Riyadh by the Mecca defense pact signed in August, have stayed out of the fight entirely.
A senior Turkish official, briefing the Middle East Eye, argued that the alliance simply hasn’t had time to become operational; its members still need to ratify the treaty domestically then build interoperability and joint-planning mechanisms to support it. All of this could take a “few years,” according to the official.
Ominously, even a resolution to the wider U.S.-Iran war, which still appears far off, may not deliver Saudi Arabia much relief.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called the Houthis “agents and proxies of the Iranians.” Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, rejected the characterization, insisting that Ansar Allah, the group’s formal name, “takes orders from no one.” The two statements can’t both be fully true, but the evidence increasingly supports the Iranian framing.
The Houthis’ antagonism toward Saudi Arabia did not begin with Iranian support. The movement’s founders saw Riyadh as an adversary from the moment they organized in the 1990s as a Zaydi Shia revivalist response to Saudi-funded Wahhabi Sunni proselytizing in Yemen’s northern highlands. After the Houthis took Sanaa in 2014 — prompting Riyadh to assemble a military coalition to reverse the takeover in 2015 — the hostility only sharpened. A 2022 truce reduced direct fighting but did little to address the underlying drivers of conflict.
Since that truce, the Houthis have only grown more emboldened. And the reality is that the Houthis have not been weakened militarily by any of the punitive campaigns launched against it — not Israel’s decapitation strikes, which killed the group’s prime minister and military chief of staff, nor Operation Rough Rider, the two-month, billion-dollar U.S. bombing campaign last year.
If military pressure at that scale couldn’t do it, it stands to reason that negotiation, in the short-term, is the only viable alternative.
The Houthis have already made their terms public. Ansar Allah’s leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, put a figure on it in March: over $57 billion in compensation for oil-sector losses attributed to the Saudi-led war, on top of standing demands to lift what the group calls a blockade of its airports and seaports, and a share of Yemen’s oil and gas revenues — the same revenues the group is now positioning to seize by force.
There is no clean way out of this for Riyadh. Even a deal bought at that steep price, and on such difficult terms, would not end the threat. It would simply bankroll the next phase of it by shoring up a movement that would retain, indefinitely, the capacity to threaten Saudi energy infrastructure whenever it chooses.
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