Saudi Arabia Under Attack: Are its Air Defenses Holding Up?

Hello everybody and welcome to Geopolitical Trends, where truth matters. Right now we got a, a single broken truce in West Asia. No, we're not talking about Iran and US, and the one I'm talking about is between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. And that in itself has just put now oil supplies and the US military on the highest alert. After 4 years, remember, it was quiet for the last 3.5 to 4 years. The Ansarullah, or the Houthis, just launched a massive missile strike on Saudi Arabia, and the reason why involves an Iranian plane flight that was supposed to land in Sana'a, and that plane was intercepted midair, and To me, the concern is how a single, a single attack by the Yemeni government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia, could now trigger a massive regional war in addition to what we already have between the US and Israel and Iran. Very, very concerning dynamics that's moving forward because when you consider what's going on right now between the US and Iran, which things are escalating beyond. And you add this to the mix, it's almost like, uh, it's like a powder keg about to explode. So the 4-year truce, it's officially over. And I'm going to play some clips for you to hear it yourself. And that's exactly what the Houthis, or Ansarullah, have declared an end to the peace. Let me see if I have a picture for you about that. Uh, no, I— not this one here, but anyway, I'll, I'll, I'll share some other pictures with you. So, so what the Houthis end up doing, they end up firing a volley of ballistic missiles and explosive drones directly into Saudi Arabia airport, Abha Airport. Of course, what is the first comment coming out of Riyadh? 'Oh, Saudis intercepted all missiles.' Don't buy that, because back in 2017, I remember writing an article, and I will share the link with you to all articles that I used to write back then, and by which the Saudis declared that, 'Oh, the Saudis have intercepted the missile that was targeting the oil refineries.' The Houthis launched that one back then, actually after 2014, I'm sorry, when— during the war. Only I found out that it wasn't true. The oil refineries were hit, and I documented that by providing the reference for it. So that's why I'm not buying the argument as to what they are saying. Second thing, the way you understand this, if Iran is providing the missiles to Saudi Arabia, what makes us think that the Saudis were able to intercept those missiles and the Israelis or the Americans or the Qataris or Kuwaitis or Bahrainis couldn't, or could for that matter. That just— it does— it's a statement for domestic consumption. What you need to understand is that what just happened, it just isn't just another sort of, uh, a border scrimmage, because there are always tensions between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, especially with Houthis, because Houthis are in the north. This is the opening match, in my opinion, of a much larger, highly volatile conflict between Iran, Israel, and the United States. And of course, things can escalate even faster. So I'm going to play the first clip for you, and I want you to, uh, uh, hear this for, for yourself here. Uh, I think they have the translation for it automatically, so let me just, uh, uh, show you the clip. Hold on, let me share the screen here.

All right, this is the moment airstrikes hit a runway at Sana'a International Airport in Yemen on Monday. The Iran-aligned Houthi movement, which controls northern Yemen, accused Saudi Arabia of launching the airstrikes. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree called the attacks "blatant aggression." He said the group had targeted an airport in Saudi Arabia in retaliation. In response to this criminal Saudi aggression, the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a significant military operation targeting Abha International Airport with a number of ballistic missiles and drones. The operation successfully achieved its objectives by the grace of God. The strikes are the first claimed by the Houthis against the kingdom since an informal truce took effect in 2022. A spokesperson for the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said the missiles were intercepted. The attack on Sana'a was claimed by Yemen's internationally recognized government, which is heavily backed by Riyadh. Its defense ministry said the strike was intended to prevent an Iranian plane from landing in violation of Yemeni sovereignty. An armed forces spokesman later said the aircraft had landed at Houthi-controlled Hudaydah airport. Video released by Al Masirah TV appeared to show a plane belonging to Iran's Mahan Air landing at that location on Monday. Reuters was unable to verify the place and date of the footage.

Okay, I just want you to see that. So of course, the next question you're going to be thinking about— what the heck is Saudis doing with this? What, what the Saudis have to do with all this? The Saudis are the one backing a parts of the government against the Houthis. You have to understand this dynamics as one who spent time on the ground in Yemen during, uh, when, uh, the late Ali Abdullah Saleh the former president of Yemen was there. Ali Abdullah Saleh used to play both sides. And I was always like, you know, Saudis, the Saudis have always been so scared of the Houthis. Why? Because you have to understand the location of— and I'll detail some of this as I move forward into this analysis. Now, of course, the context of this, what is the context of it? You have to understand it. The Houthi missile strike on the Saudi civilian airport, which is Abha International Airport, which happened, by the way, a day and a half ago. This is the direct retaliation for the military strike that heavily damaged the runway at Sana'a Airport, as you saw on that clip, which, by the way, that clip belongs to Reuters, so I give credit for that one. And this is where you see this sudden exchange of, uh, of, uh, of, uh, uh, strikes, uh, shattered now the highly fragile— for your informal truth— and we all know what happened 2 or 3 years ago when the Houthis got— when the US gets involved trying to intimidate the Houthis, and they couldn't succeed. The US had to move, uh, uh, Eisenhower— not Eisenhower, Harry Truman the aircraft carrier out of the area of the Red Sea for fear that the Houthis might attack or Ansarullah might attack that one. Israelis couldn't even keep targeting, uh, Yemen because they were just hitting some civilian abandoned locations. But the Houthis didn't hesitate in retaliating against Israel. And this is why you have to put this within the broader context of what does it mean now the Saudis being, uh, uh, retaliated against, uh, following their support for the central government in targeting Iranian planes. Uh, let me play another clip for you, and this one to highlight once again, because I want you to see the images for yourself, so this way you know where the information is coming from. So take a, take a look here, please. And I'll provide you the link to this particular clip here. And that clip belonged to Al Jazeera, and I'm gonna provide you the link to the article, uh, should you, uh, decide to read later on the article and watch the clip yourself. So, and again, the triggering incidents— of course, you have to understand the airport bombing. This is where the Saudi-backed so-called internationally recognized government of Yemen bombed the runway of, of Sana'a International Airport. I've been on that airport on many, many occasions. It's a small airport, but it's the main one for the country. However, what you need to understand is that that airport is under the control of Ansarullah. So, and the arguments from the Saudis' perspective is the flight blockade. Yemen's government stated that the bombing was in— when I say Yemen government, I am referring to the part of the government that is backed by Saudis. The Yemen government, Yemeni government, is not a cohesive entity. No, no, no, no. The Houthis takes control of certain parts of the country. So just you need to understand that distinction there. So the part of the government that is backed by Saudis are saying the bombing was necessary strategic move to block the sanctioned Iran Mahan Airport from landing. Well, first of all, you ask yourself, why will Saudi do this? You know, if they want to figure out this, resolve this issue of the, of the Persian Gulf, why are they going on targeting the Iranian plant? Which tells you right there You can't trust the Saudis for what they are saying, or any Gulf state for that matter. And the aircraft was returning, by the way, the one that was targeted was returning from, from Iran. Why? Because it was carrying the Houthi delegation that has attended the funeral of the late, uh, Ali Khamenei. So again, it was so stupid of the Saudis to go ahead and target a plane like that. For what? And that is why Ansarullah or Houthis were outraged, and rightly so. So the Houthis end up blaming Saudi Arabia for coordinating and launching the attack and labeling it— and I put in quotes because you heard what Yahya Saria said— as a blatant act of aggression, end quote. And that in itself is a violation of the airspace of Yemen. Because I, I, rightly so, Saudis have no right whatsoever to target a plane inside another country. But to the Saudis, it's not about that. To the Saudis, it's about the fear of the, the, the, uh, Ansarullah, or the whole northern part of Yemen. Here is what you need to understand, as I detailed And I'll share an— I will share an excerpt with you from my book, Saudi Arabia, where I detailed everything about the geography and the tensions that exist. Briefly, here, here is what you need to understand. When I put the map, uh, let me see if I can get you the map of— yeah, right there. Okay, where— here is Yemen. You see Yemen here. Here's Saudi Arabia. You have this area that is called Jizan. Okay, then Abha. This is where the airport that was targeted. What you need to understand when you look at the map of Saudi Arabia, not the entire map, look at the south near the borders with Yemen. Why is this important? It is important because majority of Saudi oil is in this part of the country, and that is why the, the Shiites inside Saudi Arabia are not being treated fairly as the Sunnis, even with the oil profits. The oil, the profit that they sell oil and so forth, it's being distributed not evenly. So the Saudis fear that the Shia, okay, the Shia in southern part of Saudis might rise up against the monarchy. And of course, if they rise up, guess who's going to support them? Is the Houthis, because the Houthis are located in the northern part of Yemen, in an area called Saada. And I recall during my, my travels in, in certain parts of the country, this one is in the, uh, part of the, uh, of the Saudi, in the southern part. As you notice, it's just a desert and, and ragged terrains, and that's all. It is. There is no civilization whatsoever over there. So my point is for you to understand the idea of how this particular aspect of why the Saudis have this fear. So keep that in mind. Okay, so the Houthis retaliation targeted the, uh, Abha Airport, which I showed. Did I show you? Did I play the clip? Sorry, I'm gonna play another clip for you. And by the way, this clip wasn't through a regular media. No, it was through, uh, Instagram, and it doesn't have any sound on it. So, so just take a look and you will see, because I'm gonna— you'll see the writing on the right, right? Says right there, it says Iran-backed Houthi forces launched yesterday, which, which means on the 13th, uh, missiles towards Saudi Arabia. Oh, I'm sorry, there is a— okay, let's— okay, I want you to see that once again with your own eyes so you know where the information It's coming. And this is why, in response to this, the Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree announced the official end of the de-escalation phase. This is very crucial, keep that in mind, because later on we're going to get back to this point specifically. Then you think about the Saudi interception. The Saudi-led military coalition confirmed that its air defense system successfully intercepted the incoming threat, uh, threats. And I'm going to just give you two examples here. Didn't we hear the same statements from Jordanians? Did we hear the same statements from Kuwait and Bahrain? And even Israel with its Iron Dome and all that, and they couldn't intercept that one. So for me personally, I won't just— I will not take this at face value. So the other aspects to all this is has to do with the airspace warnings. What do I mean by this? The Houthis, Ramallah, went ahead and issued an explicit warning to international commercial airlines to avoid Saudi Arabia airspace until the blockade on Sana'a Airport is lifted. You all know why the Houthis announced this one. Because that's all you need to do. Sometimes you need to— you do not need to get or engage in a fight. No, no, no, no, no. You issue a statement like this, you're going to ground all the air flight, uh, uh, travels, put them to a halt. Do you think the Saudis are not going to fly in that area? Do you think anybody who's going to Saudi for business is going to fly? Do you think any of oil, Saudi oil, is going to now transit somewhere? Whatever. No, that's the point. Houthis are smart enough, they've been around long enough. I told you, I was on the ground and we couldn't defeat them. We would not defeat them. I'm telling you this straightforward, because you have to understand, when you are fighting someone who believes in something, they don't fear death. Unlike some of us in the West, we have this fear, anxiety about death. We're all gonna check out one day, one way or another. So, but the idea, my point, and I'm sure you understand what I'm referring to, when you have conviction, you're fighting for something you believe strongly about, you're not gonna fear whatever this intimidation or the planes or missiles or what have you. All this has nothing to do. So now here is where you have to think about the broader implications to this, and I'm gonna get to the crux and the core of what this means geopolitically, uh, economically, and also from a security perspective. So this flare-up between Saudi Arabia and Ansarullah, why is it important to understand its context? It's because he's going to now threaten, and I'm not going to use the term, the term threatens, because Houthis do not threaten. Houthis act. Like Iran. We've seen this before, and I covered so many, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, I did so many analysis for you for the past year and a half to 2 years regarding Ansarullah and Houthis. Because what you need to understand, once again, this flare-up is going to completely reignite Yemen's dormant civil war, which originally began back in 2014. Remember, we were the one supporting the Saudis. Saudis couldn't defeat, uh, the Yemenis because when MBS came to power at that time, he was of the notion that, oh, I'm gonna just send my army to Yemen and take over. And I was just shaking my head because I wrote some articles about it and I said, man, you have no idea, you have no clue about international relations, you have no clue about understanding the geopolitical landscape. And you have no clue about fighting Ansarullah or Houthis. And he proved right, and I'll share a clip with you, an excerpt rather, from my book about this particular one. So what's important to understand is that even the UN Security Council held sort of an emergency meeting. Yeah, you believe that? It's because they are saying that now West Asia cannot withstand another escalating cycle of violence and urged a return to negotiated calm. And guess who called for the meeting? It was none other than the Assistant Secretary General, and his name is Khalid Hayari. Put the two and two together and figure why they are calling for a return to negotiated calm, because they know Saudis understand that once— once Houthis get involved in this now, that's going to open up a second front. Saudis, which by the way, behind closed doors, Saudis go back and forth. Oh, we're going to support Iran. Oh no, we're going to undermine Iran. You can't trust the Gulf States. So this is one thing that I need you to understand. So the main reason for this sudden escalation stems long from the simmering regional tensions. You have the economic bottleneck that now Saudi Arabia is experiencing because it's not able to, you know, just sell its oil at will. So, and of course, the key to it is the territorial, the immediate territory, which still from way back, even during my research when I was writing the Saudi book. Back then, the tensions were involved regarding the territorial disputes between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government. And that is one thing MBS did not understand, because he was thinking, I'm just gonna intimidate them with the— with my air power. Which, by the way, did you know that, uh, uh, and I'm gonna share it because it's not classified, it's You know, it was some US, some Western pilots were flying those planes, not the Saudis. How do you think the Saudis get all the target locations? We were providing them with all the intelligence. So Saudis can't do anything by themselves. I've been there on the ground and I'm seeing how a society that is so been, been, uh, and again, nothing against the Saudis, I'm not All I'm saying is the fact. All I'm stating is the— are the facts. Because a society that has been, uh, been trained, you know, has been conditioned from cradle to grave to depend on the government stipends in return for the absolute— yeah, absolute loyalty. So that's why the Saudis will not You know, tell me, what do they produce? If it weren't for oil, we won't be talking about Saudi Arabia, so, or any other Gulf state for that matter. So, and that is exactly why you have to understand now the failure to formalize this permanent peace treaty is over. It is over because the UN brokered the truce between, uh, Ansarullah and Saudi, which was in 2022. Because what happened after that, it halted all the major cross-border attacks, and the Saudi-Houthi or Ansarullah talks stalled over the last 4 years. In other words, they stopped the attacks, exchange of attacks, but there was nothing real. No agreement has been reached. There was no political solution, and the informal no peace No war, status quo left the core political sort of divisions unresolved. That is why making a return to violence highly likely at any flashpoint. And that's exactly what I see the stupidity of the Saudis for going and supporting the government in Yemen to attack an Iranian plane that was, that had Houthi members coming back from Iran attending a funeral. To me, though, whoever was advising, uh, the, the government Saudi Arabia, uh, needs to rethink his or her— mainly is him. Women do not play a role into that in Saudi society. So, uh, the, the stupidity of the highest order. That's the only way I can see it. Now you're gonna have to think about the economic warfare and the revenue dispute that exists between the So why is this important? Because you go back to the banking crisis in the months leading up to the strike. What happened? The Saudi-backed government and the Houthis engaged in a severe banking war— financial, that is— retaliating against each other's financial institutions. Because you have unpaid salaries, you have sort of, for example, A major point of contention remained that the Houthis demand that the Saudi, Saudi funded the salaries of all, all, not just Houthis, all public sector employees. So Saudis of course said no, and that right there created the problem. So, but the main one has to do with the broader regional alliance. That is where the key And I once again, if I am to guess, knowing what I know, the Saudis didn't do this on the whim. They've been coordinating with the US behind closed doors to move forward with this action. That's the only way I see it, because you have to think about Houthis. Who supports Houthis? It's not a secret, it's Iran. The Houthis, or Ansarullah, are closely aligned with Iran. Which provide them with missiles, drone technology, training, funding, and whatever else. And that is the key. You all remember about a year and a half ago I told you, should there be a war, you're going to be looking at three fronts: Iran front, the Houthi front, and the Hezbollah front. And I am leaning more and more to the conclusion that This front that is now opened is the second front, and with it, it comes one other aspect. And you know what that other aspect is? The Red Sea. That is the important of it, because that in itself is a geopolitical nightmare for the US, for Saudi Arabia, for the Gulf States, and for the Western world writ large. Because this escalation now between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis is tied to the Houthis' broader strategy. And you know what that is? To assert dominance in the region and leveraging their position against Saudi Arabia and the international shipping lane. And all I need to do is show you one map. That's all I need to do. You all know about Bab el-Mandeb. Who do you think controls Bab el-Mandeb? The US? Hell no.

Britain?

Hell no. No Western. As a matter of fact, the French, even though the German— I believe either German or Dutch back then, they sent their navy, naval assets to the area. Why the heck Germany or, or Dutch, Netherlands, that is, sending their naval assets, but the US with its aircraft carrier, uh, the Harry Truman and all that They couldn't, they couldn't stand, they couldn't fight the Houthis, and they end up having to move the aircraft out of the region further north because they know. And now with what's going on, uh, uh, sorry, I meant to show you the other picture. With what's going on right now here, and you're going to have to add now this to the picture, and you can see where this is going. Doesn't take a genius to figure it out. So here is what I wrote back then from my Saudi book, and I know some of you already got a copy, uh, of this. So please reach out if there's any explanation, something not clear to you in the book, uh, once you read it. I'll be happy to explain. Here is what I wrote back then. 3 decades later, Iran and Saudi Arabia face off once again. This time, the confrontation happens in and around Yemen, near the Saudi southern borders. The stakes now are even higher for the Saudis. Pursuant to his arrogance and foreign policy inexperience, MBS assumed that defeating the Houthis would be easy. He was wrong. How ironic that a decade ago Saudi Arabia advised the United States to think twice about invading Iraq. Yet with the ongoing conflict in Yemen, Saudi Arabia demonstrates an astounding failure and ignorance to follow its own good advice. If nothing else, such widespread myopia explains why Saudi Arabia lags behind as private conversations now underway in many Western capitals focus on Saudi Arabia's future stability and survival. That was back then when I wrote this one. Remember, I did the research back in 2015, '16, '17, and published the book in 2018, if I recall. So, so I was writing during the, the era of where the conflict was taking place. If the truth matters to you, hit like, subscribe, and tap that bell. No spin, no agenda, just the stories they don't want you to know. Don't watch from the sideline, be part of the movement. Your support keeps the truth alive. Thank you indeed, and I appreciate you supporting the channel by subscribing or sharing it with others. Your word matter— your support matters. So I want you to know that. Now let's ask the other two key questions. Uh, the first one is, what are the geopolitical and security ramifications or implications of this escalation, especially in a time when Iran-US-Israel tensions are rising? As a matter of fact, this morning I, uh, I came across some specific information which I will do a live stream for you once I confirm. You know how it works, I always have to confirm Even if I'm late a day or two, so what? Uh, because I want you to get the accurate information to the best of my ability and knowledge. Uh, and this has to do with what's going on, and we will talk about it in a second here. So, so now you think about this question. The answer is as clear as daylight, because the sudden collapse of the Saudi Houthi truce has critical ramifications now on the, uh, pertaining to the wider Western Asia. It's not just the Saudis or the Gulf States. No, no, no, no. The whole reason why is important because we moving into that direction of regional conflict as the US increases its strikes, which by the way, this morning you have some Iranian soldiers have been killed. Do you think Iran's just gonna let that go? No. And this is why you put this within that context. It's because occurring During this time, the US, Israel, and Iran high tensions, this flare-up between Saudi Arabia and Houthis transforms Yemen now from a localized civil war into an active southern front of a much broader regional conflict. And again, I find myself going back to my statements a year and a half ago. That it will be 3 fronts, one in Yemen, one in Hezbollah, with the Hezbollah in Lebanon, and one in Iran. We already have the Iran, now we have the Yemen, uh, front activated, and we're going to be hearing about the Hezbollah soon. I just heard, I have to confirm, that Hezbollah is in the possession of some Israeli soldiers. They captured some Israeli soldiers, and I'm going to confirm that and let you know. So So now let's, let's break this down, uh, briefly here, uh, for you to have a better understanding. The primary geopolitical and security ramifications, what will they include? For example, the first one that comes to mind as a geopolitical analyst, I'm gonna think about the opening of a direct southern front against the US and Israel. Not the Saudis, is the US and Israel, because Saudis are part of the US and Israel. You think about all these weapons that the Gulf states have, where do they come from? It's the US. And that is why you have to think about the timing, why the Houthis or Ansarullah decide to do this. And the first thing that should come to your mind is a strategic diversion. You know, as a security analyst or geopolitical analyst, that is, when you think security, you think geopolitics as well. The way I see it, I see that the Houthis' retaliation as a coordinated effort to demonstrate the utility and the efficiency of Iran amidst an ongoing US-Israeli-Iran friction by attacking America's primary Gulf partner, which is Saudi Arabia. Because think about who, who buys the most of the weapons The Saudis. So, so, so by doing this, attacking the primary ally of the US, Ansarullah is forcing now not only Washington, but not only US intelligence, but Mossad, the Amman, uh, MI6, you name it, the, the Bundeswehr in Germany, you name it, the, the DST in France, whatever, all Western intelligence and military assets to split their focus now away from Iran. Because we saw what happened 2 years ago when the US, with all its mighty naval assets, couldn't defeat the Houthis and end up having to withdraw. Immediately Trump came in and said, the war is over in Yemen, we defeat them. No, you did not, liar. You did not. You couldn't, and you won't. And that's my point. You have to understand the timing of it. The other one, again, when you think security and geopolitics, you think about chokepoints, threats. Remember yesterday when we did livestream? I ended the livestream with that question: future chokepoints in the world. That was my reference to this one here. So the Ansarullah explicitly warned they will completely shatter and shut down Bab-el-Mandeb Strait. And how they going to do? They're going to use missiles and drones attack if any Gulf nation join any Western-led conflict against Iran. And this is again where you have to understand the dynamics of how geopolitics, uh, operates. So this is again when you have now, uh, uh, uh, Houthis within their ability to strike anywhere they want now. Yeah, that's exactly what is happening. And when the Saudis saying we intercepted— no, you did not. Stop lying. Stop lying. Uh, this is a picture of a Yemeni fighter brandishing his weapon This is not during a fight, but this is during a rally. They were doing some rally inside Yemen. So the second one has to do with the disruption to global energy market. And there is another part to it, and you know that part has to do with the MBS Vision 2030. I wrote about it extensively in, in the book because I say it just hypes, no more, no less. Saudis don't have the infrastructure for the Yes, they have the money, they can buy all that stuff, but they don't have the brain power. Who's going to operate that? The Westerners? Yeah, the Westerners will operate this for the next 3, 4 months. Then the lifestyle in that country, it's not suited for Western mindset. They're gonna say, we're done here, no matter how much you pay us. And this is again when you have to think in terms of the threat to a global, uh, the Gulf— I'm sorry, the Gulf infrastructure. So because now the Houthis, by doing what they did, they have now renewed just the perception of threat, perception of danger against vital Saudi energy infrastructure, but also the Gulf states. And this heavily pressured now not only those states, it pressured global oil markets, which are already volatile due to regional shipping disruptions as the Strait of Hormuz is shut down by the, uh, uh, Iran. Then there is the economic red line, so, which is straightforward. And this is where I found the stupidity of the Saudis embarking on, on, on, on attacking this Iranian plane. Why on earth would you do that? And here is the thing, for Saudi Arabia, the resumption of a war with the Houthis directly is going to impact MBS's 2030 vision. Because what is the Saudis after is economic diversification plans. How do you think you're going to invest in a country that is not stable? No matter what they tell you, of course the media will have— this is how it works in the world of investments. As a matter of fact, I am working on one particular analysis. This is going to be for the business community. I'm going to release it soon. There are some things you need to understand, and one of the key— always think about is the political stability. Yeah, the monarchy might be in charge, but really the reality on the ground says otherwise. And with this renewed tensions between the Houthis or Ansarullah and Saudi cement that notion that there is no stability there. Why should we go and invest billions of dollars? Because, Mike, my word on this, foreign investments, which relies on what? Stability will vanish the moment Houthis projectiles and missiles and drones constantly target Saudi Arabia domestic airspace. Doesn't have to be with energy infrastructure, whatever, just the fact that they access the airspace of Saudi, it's over. And I'm gonna share a link with you of when I used to write for the Huffington Post. There are tons of articles there that I wrote. You remember I used to write back in 2013 and what have you, so Just go there and take a look at some of this, uh, uh, uh, uh, some of those articles, and some of them pertain to this one here. The third element is the destruction of the Saudi-Iran rapprochement. Remember who was behind this rapprochement? It was China, and it works out. We were furious that we're seeing the Saudis reestablishing diplomatic ties with Iran. We didn't like it. And the, the Chinese succeeded in establishing that because the Chinese were working on it for years quietly. But this proxy war now is going to reignite because the 2023 diplomatic normalization between Riyadh and Tehran, which is brokered by China, as I mentioned, depended heavily on Iran restraining the Houthis. So, and that is why, why I find it very stupid of the Saudi part to go ahead and attack, uh, the, uh, the plane, uh, the Iranian plane landing in Sana'a. That, that just, uh, the other point to this has to do with now the imminent escalation. There is no going back. Because here is what the Saudis are doing now. This is according to some intelligence report, and I will share the link with you, uh, later on. So the intelligence report, uh, as a matter of fact, uh, hold on a second. Yeah, no, I have it in a separate location. I will get you that link. Intelligence reports indicate now the Saudi leadership Guess what they are worrying now and thinking about and moving into doing? They are moving now into a proactive defensive stance, not offensive one, because they, they won't stand no chance against the Houthis. And that is why the retaliatory strikes against Houthis' naval assets or Iranian command centers could completely shatter the diplomatic channel built over the last few years. And if they ever do that, meaning the Saudis, Houthi is not gonna— it will be relentless in firing, uh, at, at Saudi, uh, Saudi, uh, uh, infrastructure. And the last point of all this, it has to do with the severe strain on Western air defenses. Remember, Saudi Arabia, like Qatar, like Kuwait, like Bahrain, in an Arab Emirates, Amman, even Israel All their Iron Dome depends on the US. And we found out with Iran's missile again in Tel Aviv that, that, uh, or targeting Ben Gurion Airport, whatever, uh, the Iron Dome stood no chance. David's Sling stood no chance. The Arrow 3 stood no chance. And Saudi Arabia doesn't have those. Saudi Arabia has just the, the regular, uh, uh, uh, Iron Dome system. That's it. And that is again because what the Saudis going to find out, they're going to be depleted of the stockpile of missiles because defending against relentless Houthi strikes has severely already depleted Saudi Arabia stockpile. Of course, to the Americans, it's windfall. Keep the fight going and sell more missiles to the Saudis. That's how it operates in Washington. And that is exactly— but again, there is a problem with all that and has to do with the asymmetric advantage, because producing this kind of Western missiles is very slow and expensive comparison to Iran cheap, uh, made, uh, Houthi drones. Remember that image of, uh, uh, uh, the $2 or $4 million missile trying to target a $10,000, $20,000 Iranian drones. Houthis are getting those as well, but they are getting also the missiles. And that in itself will create now a severe logistical bottleneck for the US and for the so-called allies, Saudi Arabia and so forth. Because what the US— especially for the US is going to be even worse because the US now have to supply too. It has to supply Israel and has to supply Saudi Arabia simultaneously. And we don't have any of that. How are we gonna do that? We don't have any of that. That is exactly, uh, uh, where you see this particular developments going forward. Now, one last question I'm gonna ask before I'll do the conclusion for you and play some clips and conclude with this live stream. And this, from the bigger picture, has nothing to do with, with Houthis or Ansarullah. Uh, it has to do with what's going on in the region. And you ask yourself the question, what all's going on in West Asia or Middle East, specifically with the war in Iran, is there any direct link between that and the upcoming midterm congressional elections? Just take a step back and think about it, and the answer is yes. So, so most Americans have no idea. They really have no idea because what Trump's been doing from way back, pushing hard, right? Pushing hard towards what? Trying to end the fighting and wanted to continue. Even now he's still saying, yeah, we target Iran, but we are still having negotiations. But what he does not get, he does not get— the guy is so whatever— he does not get is that Iran will not give him that opportunity because Iran figured it out, you know, just drag this longer till midterm. And that is exactly what happened since July the 6th or whatever when this tensions erupted all of a sudden. Because what did Donald Trump— he retaliated with like a massive bombing, right? And, and, and went ahead and attacked Iran infrastructure, including one of the, uh, sort of traffic control tower that Iran used to monitor, uh, the vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. But he didn't expect that Iran is going to counterattack And he did, with missiles and drones targeting US locations, installations in the region— Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, uh, and United Arab Emirates, Qatar. But not those last two, not at this time, but before. So, yeah, the mainly was Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait. So, and that was on July 7th. On July 8th, Trump had had enough and declared ceasefire is dead. That's what he wanted to show. Then he followed up with this on his platform by saying, oh, the Iranians are bad and all that stuff. Come on, man, you couldn't swallow a defeat. So, and that is exactly where you have to understand, as tension is going on, as peace talks are underway in Qatar No, because what Trump wants is to end this fighting as soon as possible, because his main reason to do so has to do with what upcoming— with the upcoming midterm elections in November, because they could lose both houses. Not that the Democrats are any better. Ah, don't, don't be misled, you know, they're as corrupted as the Republicans. And you wish American people wake up. You wish they will wake up, because there are only two other scenarios you see moving forward between now and, and then, and November. If you, you have— if, if gas prices and, and, and, uh, uh, oil and so forth don't keep going up, you're gonna have to— you're gonna find out that the Republicans will be pressed hard to be even satisfied with the slim majority in the lower house, or the House of Representatives. But you have to think of the other scenario if the Democrats takes over. What will it be? Impeachment won't be far behind. That's what I want you to get out of this as moving forward, especially for my American, uh, viewers. So let me share my conclusion with you. Then we'll, we'll play some clips here like I always do. I only have about 3 for you here. So now what we see in West Asia, sad to say, uh, because West Asia now is on really, really balances on some sort of a razor edge between what's going on with Iran and between now what's going on with the Ansarullah al-Houthi. And this broken truce between Yemen and Saudi Arabia is no longer just a local conflict. No, no, no, no, no. It's now critical front in a much larger global chess match, something we are unable to understand, those dynamics with the US, Israel, and Iran now drawing closer to an all-out conflict, uh, uh, confrontation. That is what I see coming soon. A single drone, a single missile strike could change everything overnight. And that's exactly what just happened with the Houthis, what they did in, uh, in, uh, in Saudi Arabia. It's going to start with that. It's already starting with that. This is, by the way, a picture, uh, satellite, unclassified, not the military satellites here, uh, targeting this location here. There were some Iranian soldiers, they were killed. So, and I get the confirmation of it, uh, and this is the MQ-1. This is not an MQ-9, this is an MQ-1 Predator drone was downed, uh, by Iran. And I tried to get you a specific information pertaining to something that has to do with this But guess what? I was blocked. Here is what it is. You have been blocked. So it is what it is. So we move on. So suffice it to say, that's what I need you to understand. So I'm going to leave you with one question. I would like you to put your comment like you've always done in the, in the comment sections, and I will usually read and respond. And I appreciate you if you hit like and share this video with others. I would greatly appreciate it. Do you think this sudden escalation between Saudi Arabia and Yemen will drag the West into direct military conflict with Iran, or can diplomacy still save the region from the brink? So just make sure you leave me your comments in the comment section. As I said earlier, I will be working on the news stories for you, especially with what's going on with Iran, and because there are some developments taking place and I will share with you in due time. So let's do the first clip. Uh, I think the first one is just a picture. Yes, it is. And, uh, and I'm going to translate for you because it's, uh, it's written in Arabic. Uh, what I found interesting about it is I just mentioned that to you yesterday, right? What did I tell you yesterday? I told you that Mike, my word, that what the US is going to do is going to ask the Gulf states, oh, you want us to protect you, you have to put money down on the table, you have to put money on the table. And that's exactly what this clip is all about. Take a look here. Here is what it says. Agile, uh, like break-ins, or new, or urgent. Donald Trump has asked Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Kuwait to put money down for their protection. And if they want the, uh, US to secure the navigation of their tankers, whatever, in the region, they have to put money down. That's why I'm not surprised, you know, you know, that, that's Donald Trump, that's transaction. And not even— that's for him, for his family. Corruption runs so damn deep, not just with Trump, is inside the government. Ah, the so-called government, our government. And, and, and here is the one to confirm it for you. I digged enough to find a specific clip for you. Selling the Oval Office to the highest bidder, and as the American people are struggling to afford the high cost of his policies, the tariffs, the war, the big ugly bill that cut their healthcare. He is living large. He's enjoying this new jet, a gift from the Qataris, renovations funded by the taxpayers. He's pocketing cash from these digital schemes. His sons are making money working with foreign autocrats.

It's a—

corruption is out of control. And exactly, and that's why when I say, uh, when I post on my, uh, on, on, on, on X or some other platform, they, they'll take it down and they tell me you are inciting violence when I say no, no, this is how you deal with corrupt people. You don't put them in jail for the next 15 years. No, no, no, you know what I mean. You got the idea. So, and that's exactly the point. You know, I, I, I reposted one that took place in China and I said, this is how they deal with corrupted officials. And I was labeled as, oh no, Mr. Dr. Oualaalou, you— no, no, no, no, we don't do that in our country. Well, great, then let, let corruption take over and, and you struggle with making, uh, uh, uh, ends meet. Good luck to you. So, and the last one I want to share with you is this one right here about soccer. I know Some of you might not expect, uh, which I found, uh, you know, I never care for Argentina. I know what's going on with their federation. Now there is an investigation going on, and guess who's leading the investigation? Is the FBI. There's money laundering going on. Take a listen.

Argentina Football Association caught up in middle of alleged $300 million money This is a major breaking news coming in. Argentina Football Association caught up in middle of alleged $300 million money laundering investigation by FBI amid World Cup. According to reports and sources, the FBI are investigating the Argentine Football Association over suspicious financial activity and caught up in the middle of alleged $300 million money laundering investigation by FBI amid World Cup. And according to the Business Standard. The investigation comes amid heightened scrutiny of Argentine football following the country's controversial 3-2 victory over Egypt in the FIFA World Cup 2026 round of 16, a match that drew criticism over several refereeing decisions. While Argentina continues its World Cup campaign on the pitch, attention is now also focused on the serious financial allegations surrounding the country's football federation.

Make sure to follow Yeah, it's kind of, uh, I don't know how much you follow soccer stuff, but you know, it kind of World Cup lost its aura, per se. It's corruption even in that. And anyway, I just wanted to share that with you. So, uh, hope you— by the way, I just quickly, guys, if you allow me just to share the link with you for, uh, if you want to support my upcoming trip to Asia, here is the link for that, and I'm going to show you where we are with the, uh, with the funding. I would greatly appreciate— and thanks to those who've been donating, uh, in this endeavor. I'm very, very grateful to you for that. Uh, the other link is for the channel should you decide to support it. You know the type of information that I provide you, and I work relentlessly on this because that's my commitment to you. I don't do this because I wanted to sitting in front of a camera and no, no, I, I, I have other things I, I can deal with. But it's because the day I made that decision to be committed to you with this, so, but at the same time, I can't do it alone and I need support for that. I don't want to support from entities that will dictate to me what to say, and I will refuse that no matter what the cost is. That's not how I operate. If any entity wants to support the channel I will welcome it, but as long as they don't dictate to me what to tell my community as far as information. So, so I will greatly appreciate you, uh, supporting the channel if you decide to do so. And the next link is for my books. If you want to get a copy of the Saudi book, which you will find very, very interesting— I spent 2 years, 2 and a half years doing the research for it, like I always do for my books. And, uh, so if you want to get a copy, uh, of that one, uh, this is the link once again. So, so I'm going to be working on the stories for you, and, uh, I will see you soon. As always, remember, geopolitics impacts your daily life in more ways than one. Till next time, bye-bye.