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Arabia
40 (!) Iranian vessels found in Yemeni waters
2016-10-14
Aden, Riyadh- High-ranking Yemeni sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that around forty Iranian warships violated on Wednesday Yemeni territorial waters. According to Yemeni government sources, there is a huge probability that these warships were smuggling weapons for the Houthis and transporting mercenaries from some African countries to join the insurgents.

“The Yemeni cabinet session, on Wednesday, discussed this issue and the way to protect Yemeni territorial waters; the government asked the Arab coalition forces to help guard the Yemeni waters and decided to address the U.N. and Security Council on the repeated violations by the Iranian warships,” reported the sources.

The Minister of Fisheries Wealth Fahd Salim Kafayen said that the violation of the Iranian warships was the second in one month, adding that the Yemeni naval forces lack capabilities to intercept them.

“The Iranian flags were not raised on the warships but their structure and matching with previous Iranian warships that were caught in the Yemeni waters, prove that they are Iranian warships,” Kafayen added.

These updates coincide with the Yemeni government’s efforts to submit to the U.N. Security Council a comprehensive file on the Iranian meddling in Yemen’s internal affairs.

On another level, forces loyal to the Yemeni government have advanced into the Houthi stronghold Sa’dah. Forces announced taking over Al-Buqah border following a quick operation which enabled them to purge the zone of rebels.

Sa’dah Governor Hadi Tarshan affirmed that Buqah border has been liberated and that the forces loyal to the government advanced dozens of kilometers towards Sa’dah.

Buqah is considered one of the major land borders of Yemen with Saudi Arabia, around 150 kilometers away from Sa’adah.
Posted by:badanov

#17  Thanks, tw.
Posted by: Pappy   2016-10-14 19:57  

#16  Wikipedia claims it was a Usenet user named James Nicoll, Pappy. The full quote is even stronger:

The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.
Posted by: trailing wife   2016-10-14 16:12  

#15  A place like Yemen will have many small ships plying up and down the coast. Not least because the roads are bad and often dangerous even in the good times. Impossible to keep track of them.
Posted by: phil_b   2016-10-14 16:11  

#14  Someone once said that English doesn't borrow from other languages; it clubs them over the head and rummages through their pockets.
Posted by: Pappy   2016-10-14 15:36  

#13  Fine word. Makes me feel like I'm stomping around in muddy boots.

Article dated yesterday, claim is the day before. I wouldn't think coasters would just show up out of nowhere; I'm guessing that the regions worst kept secret is going public.

I did see a theory about the Swift being a US mission operating under a flag of convenience, a trick I think is as old as maritime history, but I have not tried it and don't know how much salt it needs, it is over there next to the salmon loaf with caper sauce.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2016-10-14 12:39  

#12  Arab auxesis at its finest

Learn something new every day!

Auxesis (Greek: αὔξησις, aúxēsis) is the Greek word for "growth" or "increase". In rhetoric, it refers to varying forms of increase: hyperbole (overstatement): intentionally overstating a point, its importance, or its significance. climax (ascending series): a series of clauses of increasing force.
Posted by: SteveS   2016-10-14 11:56  

#11  Heck, quote probably pre-dates David in some form or another. My little league coach said something similar about swinging at pitches.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2016-10-14 11:45  

#10  ^ I thought that was Gordie Howe?
Posted by: Raj   2016-10-14 11:13  

#9  I doubt any of their naval vessels have any real defensive capacity. They would be easy targets.

You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
~Wayne Gretzky
Posted by: swksvolFF   2016-10-14 10:49  

#8  and How many american vessels in Yemeni waters?

Likely very, very few, if any. Certainly none of the dhow or small 'coaster' transport types, which are the "warships" being bandied about here. Arab auxesis at its finest.
Posted by: Pappy   2016-10-14 10:46  

#7  and How many american vessels in Yemeni waters?
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2016-10-14 09:56  

#6  1. I doubt Iran has 40 sea worthy vessels of any substantial size in its whole Navy. They may have many commercial type ships with some portable weapons mounted on them.

2. I doubt any of their naval vessels have any real defensive capacity. They would be easy targets.
Posted by: lord garth   2016-10-14 08:32  

#5  And closing in on the end of his regime, will Obola reprise his role in the Holy Grail and RUN AWAY!! RUN AWAY! and leave a red line behind?
Posted by: AlanC   2016-10-14 08:01  

#4  April 19, 1988|LATimes. WASHINGTON — U.S. warships and aircraft sank or heavily damaged six Iranian navy ships Monday as a major confrontation erupted in the Persian Gulf in the wake of the United States' early morning strike against two Iranian oil platforms, the Reagan Administration said.

U.S. and Iranian forces fired on each other in the broadest and most direct conflict yet, suddenly escalating what for months had been a war of nerves in the volatile waterway.

After ordering U.S. naval units to destroy the oil platforms in the southern gulf, in what he described as a "measured response" to renewed Iranian mining of the gulf that damaged a U.S. frigate last week, President Reagan declared:

"We've taken this action to make certain the Iranians have no illusions about the cost of irresponsible behavior. We aim to deter further Iranian aggression, not provoke it."
Posted by: Shick de Medici6262   2016-10-14 07:17  

#3  Coastal fishing of seasonal migration?
Posted by: Skidmark   2016-10-14 06:56  

#2  I wonder if we'll allow them to play the "how close can we get without them kicking our ass" game anymore.
Posted by: gorb   2016-10-14 01:45  

#1  Assuming the person with the clicker is accurate and without bias, this is a "totally unexpected" show of force in response to the USN taking out the Houthi rocket emplacements.

So, this is how escalation works.
Posted by: Blossom Unains5562   2016-10-14 00:08  

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