17-10-2026: The Ansar Allah (Arabic for Supporters of God) attack on the King Khalid International airport in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh on October 10 reportedly killed 12 people and wounded 300, along with other damage to infrastructure.[1] It was the third attack on the airport within a week. There was an outcry in the compliant Western media, yet these lamentations are filled with hypocrisy. Saudi Arabia – with the support and backing of the governments of the United States of America (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) bombed Yemen for seven years from 2015 to 2022. During that time, the Western backed and supplied Saudi armed forces bombed Yemeni airports, schools, hospitals, weddings, funerals, residential homes and drove Yemen into literal famine conditions.[2] That war was arguably a spin-off from the US led proxy regime change war on Syria from 2011 to 2024. Today, even the liberal Guardian acknowledges that the restarting of the US backed Saudi war on Yemen is an expansion of Washington’s criminal war of aggression on the Islamic Republic of Iran.[3]
Houthi led revolution
Ansar Allah in Yemen are also known as the Houthis, after the founder of the movement, but they themselves prefer Ansar Allah. The Ansar Allah movement began an armed uprising against Yemen’s government in 2004 which culminated in a successful revolution in 2011, which forced President Saleh to resign. A turning point came in September 2014, when Ansar Allah forces seized control of the Yemeni capital Sanaa. Today, while the Ansar Allah coalition controls around 30% of Yemen’s territory, that territory retains as much as 75% of the Yemeni population.[4] So Ansar Allah are not in practice “Houthi rebels” as they are disdainfully referred to in much of the Western corporate media. Ansar Allah are the effective government of Yemen and have been since 2014. The US/UK/Saudi war on Yemen from 2015 to 2022 was in practice an attempt to re-install the so-called “internationally recognised” government of former President Saleh, at a horrendous cost. In fact, this war on Yemen took the lives of around 130 000 Yemenis,[5] and yet Ansar Allah survived.
In fact, this war hardened and steeled the Ansar Allah movement and arguably increased its level of popular support. The Ansar Allah led revolutionary government of Yemen and its armed force of a reported 350 000 fighters should not be dismissed by the fact that many wear sandals on their feet and hold a ceremonial dagger under their belts. This movement has the skills to use and deploy advanced weaponry, up to and including ballistic and possibly hypersonic missiles. On September the 10th, Ansar Allah forces seized the strategic Red Sea port city of Mocha and were reportedly welcomed by the locals. Mocha lies just north of the Bab el-Mandab strait and has virtually enabled Ansar Allah control of this crucial shipping lane, although some claim the control is not total.[6] Whatever the exact case, Ansar Allah has enough control of the strait to cause severe angst amongst the ruling elites of the West.
Failing war on Iran
It should be understood that the current Saudi war on Yemen is in practice a US laundered war on the Ansar Allah led government in an attempt to gain control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, as well as an attempt to take down a key ally of Iran – which has retained control of the Strait of Hormuz. The US led war for regime change on Iran is a failing fiasco, but Washington also has the aim of cutting off energy supplies to the giant socialistic People’s Republic of China (PRC). With Ansar Allah controlling the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and Iran controlling the Strait of Hormuz, US imperialism is somewhat checkmated. However, massive US military presence and its war has reduced the traffic of ships willing to traverse either the Strait of Hormuz or the Bab el-Mandeb. Despite this, imperialism realises that Ansar Allah is a smaller target than the vast Iranian republic with over 92 million people. Therefore, Yemen becomes the immediate target of Washington, via its vassal Saudi Arabian state.
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia is now paying a severe price for turning away from the rising multipolar world and back towards its traditional US benefactor. A few short years ago, Saudi Arabia was invited to join the non-imperialist BRICS confederation (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa plus 15 other Global South states). The Saudi monarchy could see the writing on the wall for the declining US Empire and began negotiations with the Eurasian powers. In 2023, the PRC brokered a reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran, who had long been stern adversaries.[7] However, perhaps under pressure from Washington, or perhaps after developing cold feet, the Saudi monarchy turned away from multipolarity and back towards its traditional benefactor. This choice has now been exposed as a major strategic error, as Saudi Arabia is under severe military assault after themselves restarting their war on Yemen. What is more, the government of the US has refused to come to the aid of Saudi Arabia even while it remains under heavy military fire, with Saudi airports and oil fields subjected to Yemeni missile strikes.
Axis of Resistance
Ansar Allah in Yemen forms an integral part of the Axis of Resistance and arguably plays a more prominent role since ISIS/Al Qaeda/HTS was eventually installed into power in Syria by imperialism in December 2024. The remaining constituent parts of the Axis of Resistance now include Ansar Allah in Yemen, Iran, Hezbollah in Lebanon and various Shia militias in Iraq. Even though Ansar Allah does not follow the same strand of Shia Islam which is predominant in Iran, their strong bonds remain forged in shared battles against the US overlord. Ansar Allah is also known for its staunch defence of Palestine, and has risked its own well-being to assist Palestinians resist the Zionist Israeli state onslaught. Washington is attempting to cut off Iran’s Axis of Resistance allies in Yemen and in Lebanon as part of its drive for regime change in Tehran. While there are political limitations to all religious based movements, working people internationally have a vital stake in offering military support to the Axis of Resistance in its crucial struggle for survival in the face of imperialism.
Workers the world over also have a direct material interest in taking action to end the US led wars on Iran and Yemen, and not just because innumerable innocents will be slaughtered. Iran and Yemen have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb in a crucial act of self-defence. This has led to a dramatic increase in the price and availability of fuel such as diesel in the West. In nations like the US and Australia, diesel is the backbone of the economy, fuelling much of industry, transport and agriculture. Increases in the price of diesel thus automatically lead to price increases in food, basic goods, construction materials and much more. Working people already struggling with a dire cost of living crisis, still exacerbated by the deliberate “Covid” operation five years ago, cannot afford to pay even more now. The imperialist proxy war on Russia via Ukraine has also reduced the availability of Russian diesel, despite the Trump Administration signing a temporary deal to purchase this much needed commodity before the US mid-term elections. The war on Iran, the war on Yemen and the proxy war on Russia waged by the crumbling Western capitalist elites are the main cause of the unacceptable cost of living crisis afflicting working people. We have an urgent material interest in ending these deadly wars.
Capitalism in the West is aware that it cannot fight and win a war against either Iran, Russia or China – the pillars of the rising multipolar world. Before leaving the stage of history, therefore, it is prepared to do as much damage as it can to destroy a world it can no longer dominate. It will unleash chaos, terrorism, war, sanctions, blowing up pipelines, regime change operations and more – unless working people step in and put a stop to this runaway machine. Imperialism can be abstract, but opposition to it becomes very concrete when appropriate levels of political and military support are simultaneously extended to its targets – Iran, Yemen, Lebanon, Russia, China and the Global South. The rise of socialism will be the pathway to end the wars of a dying empire. STOP THE WAR ON YEMEN! STOP THE WAR ON IRAN! US MILITARY OUT OF THE MIDDLE EAST!
Workers League
E: workersleague@protonmail.com
[1] www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/10/attack-on-airport-in-saudi-capital-riyadh-leaves-several-injured (14-10-2026)
[2] www.responsiblestatecraft.org/saudi-arabia-yemen-war/ (14-10-2026)
[3] www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/08/houthi-strike-saudi-arabia-oil-facilities-middle-east-war-iran (14-10-2026)
[4] www.vigiljournal.com/en/yemens-houthis-who-they-are-and-how-many-they-number-today-eve-bab-al-mandab-seizure (14-10-2026)
[5] www.wcys.org/timeline-yemen-war-began-in-2014-when-houthis-seized-sanaa/ (14-10-2026)
[6] www.profilenews.com/en/houthis-seize-mocha-bab-al-mandab-2/ (14-10-2026)
[7] www.gulfnews.com/world/gulf/saudi/saudi-arabia-iran-restoration-of-ties-a-victory-for-dialogue—chinas-wang-yi-1.94375573 (14-10-2026)
Image: The Saudi Aramco oil facility has been hit multiple times. http://www.nytimes.com
