U.S. arms to Saudi Arabia: A new threat to Yemeni sovereignty and Palestinian solidarity

On Aug. 9, the Biden administration made official its decision to lift its ban on the sale of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia. 

Specifically, the U.S. State Department announced: “The department is lifting its suspension on certain transfers of air to ground munitions to Saudi Arabia. This suspension was imposed in early 2021 following the administration’s announcement that it was ending support for offensive operations in the conflict in Yemen, including relevant U.S. arms transfers  . . . Saudi Arabia has also been a key partner in seeking a durable resolution to the conflict in Yemen.”

Pay attention to that last sentence. In that last sentence, one can find the real intent behind this new rash of U.S. arms sales to the Saudi monarchy. The change in a three-year policy comes down to one word: Yemen. 

Since the beginning of the Zionists’ most recent phase of the genocide against Palestine, Yemeni armed forces have sunk or damaged 32 Western vessels bound for “Israel” via the Red Sea. Some of these vessels were military, and some were commercial.

However, all of these vessels were on missions in support of Zionism. Such missions cannot be tolerated. To that end, the people of Yemen intervened to stop all forms of assistance to the Zionist occupation regime. 

Yemen’s fight against Zionism on behalf of Gaza represents a great act of resistance to Western hegemony in the region. It seems that in response to this resistance and solidarity, the U.S. and its Saudi allies will look to reignite a full-scale war on Yemen. Since 2022, Saudi’s war against Ansarallah, the Yemeni government’s ruling party, has been on hold under an uneasy UN-negotiated ceasefire. 

Until recently, both sides seemed committed to the peace process. On Aug. 14, the Saudi, UAE, and U.S. militaries launched a series of drone and artillery attacks against free Yemen. These attacks, the largest of their kind in two years, came just five days after the U.S. announced it would resume offensive arms sales to the Saudi monarchy. That is quite a coincidence. 

The U.S.-Saudi coalition’s escalation against Yemen is dangerous and comes as Yemen continues to recover from a decade of Saudi-led war and blockade. Progressive and anti-imperialist movements across the world must stand with Yemen now more than ever. 

The Western imperialist aggression against Yemen via Saudi Arabia represents a chance for the U.S. to strike against the Palestinian resistance while also lining the already full pockets of defense industry billionaires. Further, the Biden administration’s renewal of arms sales to Saudi Arabia again proves that the Democratic Party only invests in war and genocide. 

The world must stand with the people of Yemen as they continue to repel these acts of imperialist aggression. 

Lev Koufax is an anti-Zionist Jewish activist.