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Rowdy Rebels
"It’s not possible for us not to respond to these operations."
That accidentally (and tragically) hilarious assessment came from Mohammed Abdul Salam. If you're unfamiliar, or inclined to confuse him with any other Mohammed ("Fogell, have you actually ever met anyone named Mohammed?"), he's a representative for the Houthis. And he spoke to Al Jazeera on Friday.
"These operations" were, of course, US-led strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, retaliation for incessant mischief in the Red Sea, wh
Just 40 years ago it was pirates operating out of the Somali side of the channel boarding and taking whole ships hostage. That made it easier to draw in warships from many nations which finally put an end to it. Will the US see that kind of support this time?
Meanwhile, just across the strait, Ethiopia is saber rattling again about wanting a Red Sea port back:
https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2023/11/02/ethiopias-prime-minister-wants-a-red-sea-harbour
It occurred to me that Biden could use a war, or some military escalation to help him out with the election coming up — fine with me if it keeps Don out.
High bar indeed.
From what I can determine, the street exchange rate between Iranian rials and USDs has gone from 115,500 to 1 USD in 2019 to 462,000 rials to 1USD in 2023. In addition, the inflation rates were 40%, 31% and 43% in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Given that oil (priced in USDs) accounts for over half of the GDP and half of the country lives on less than about $35/month- I am wondering if the Iranian leadership (Khamenei) is being forced to redirect the people to go to war because otherwise the people are going to protest against Khamenei over their declining living conditions as a result of excessive inflation and currency devaluation.