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NYC protesters pounce on Biden airstrikes, call Houthis anti-genocide, freedom-fighting rebels

January 12, 2024 | | Print Article

Anti-war activists all responded quickly on Thursday to U.S. and U.K. strikes in Yemen against Iranian-backed Houthi military targets as fears of escalation in the Middle East mount.

The strikes from the United States and Great Britain were launched from both the air and sea following Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea, according to Reuters.

Protestors claim the Houthis are simply showing their support for Hamas-controlled Palestinians in Gaza who have been under Israeli siege since the savage terrorist attack on Israel on October 7.

Flying Palestinian flags and carting signs and banners, several dozen activists descended once again on New York City’s Times Square chanting slogans such as “U.S. U.K. go to hell,” “hands off the Middle East,” “hands off Yemen,” and “hands off Gaza.”

“Stop the U.S. bombing of Yemen,” one banner read.

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“The true face of Zionism and imperialism has showed its face once more,” one activist shouted through a megaphone, according to the Daily Mail.

The protesters marched from Times Square to Columbus Circle, the outlet reports, and it is believed that at least one person was detained by the police.

A similar protest was staged in Washington, D.C., near the White House.

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According to Reuters, the protests were organized in part by a group known as “Act Now to Stop War and End Racism” — also known as the ANSWER Coalition.

“The Pentagon war machine wants to punish Yemen for refusing to allow the waters off their coast to be used to sustain the genocide against Palestinians,” the organization stated on its website. “It is a wanton violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and an extremely dangerous escalation. The Biden administration’s actions have raised the prospect of a devastating regional war.”

So who are these celebrated anti-genocide, freedom-fighting Houthis?

Well, according to the Daily Mail, “The Shia militant group is allied to Tehran, as are Hamas and Hezbollah, and seeks to reduce western influence in the Middle East. Its slogan includes the words ‘death to America’, ‘death to Israel’ and ‘a curse upon the Jews’.”

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The rebel Houthis appeared on the world’s radar in the 1990s amid concerns that relations between former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, Saudi Arabia, and Israel were getting too close for comfort.

The Daily Mail reports:

The death of the group’s founder, Hussein al Houthi, at the hands of the Yemeni military led to the Houthi insurgency from 2004.

The group later participated in the 2011 Yemeni revolution,

The rebels rose to prominence after capturing Yemen’s capital Sana’a in 2014, sparking a civil war which is estimated to have killed almost 400,000 people.

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They captured more territory after aligning with Mr Saleh in 2015 and now control much of western Yemen down to the Bab al Mandeb Strait, a 16-mile stretch of water which marks the entrance to the Red Sea.

 

Tehran has allegedly supported the Houthis with arms, training, and financial aid.

To many online, President Biden’s assault in Yemen is “insanity.”

“The State Dept earlier this year sent $444 million to Yemen. The U.S. has spent $5.4 billion in Yemen!” one user on X exclaimed. “We are now forced to use the U.S. military. Biden released funds to Iran who fund the Houthis and Hamas. Insanity!”

While in office, former President Donald Trump “designated Yemen’s Houthis as a terrorist organization,” social media strategist Chuck Callesto noted, “and then ONE DAY after taking office Joe Biden reversed it.”

“HE’S NOW BOMBING THEM…” Callesto stated. “You can’t make this STUPIDITY up.”

Melissa Fine
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