Will Iran Retailiate Against Saudi Arabia For Its Air Strikes In Yemen?

VOA: Saudi Airstrikes In Yemen Raise Specter Of Iranian Retaliation

Saudi Arabia’s airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen have raised fears of a proxy war and direct conflict between Tehran and rival Riyadh.

But some analysts say this is unlikely — and caution there are other concerns much more pressing.

The Houthis are members of a Shi’ite revival movement that has fought Yemen’s central government for at least a decade and took control of the capital, Sana'a, in September.

Iran, which backs the rebels, has called the airstrikes a “dangerous action” against Yemen’s sovereignty. Iran is reported to have provided the Houthis money, weapons and training, but it isn’t clear how much and for how long.

WNU Editor: Most people are saying no .... Iran will do nothing. But as the conflict in Yemen intensifies, Iran will need to do something to at least placate their supporters in other conflict zones that they will not be abandoned by Iran.What shape or form that retaliation may take is something that I do not know .... and I also do not know how Saudi Arabia itself may respond if they are targeted .... but I suspect that they will not take it lying down.

Yemen Is Now Part Of The Proxy War Between Iran And Saudi Arabia

Con Coughlin, The Telegraph: Yemen is a battlefield for Saudi Arabia and Iran

The latest atrocity in Yemen, which claimed nearly 150 lives on Friday, appears part of a proxy war between the Middle East's two superpowers

Of all the wars that have ravaged the Middle East since the outbreak of the so-called Arab Spring four years ago, the bitter rivalry between the more fanatical adherents of Sunni and Shia Islam has now emerged as the region’s defining conflict.

The deadly series of suicide bomb attacks in Yemen on Friday, which are reported to have claimed the lives of nearly 150 people, is just the latest brutal manifestation of the Sunni-Shia conflict which has resulted in rival forces inflicting widespread bloodshed throughout the Arab world.

Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Bahrain are among the many Middle Eastern states that have been badly affected by the deepening hostility between rival Sunni and Shia factions. And at the heart of a conflict which threatens to transform the political landscape of the modern Arab world lies the deadly rivalry between Saudi Arabia’s Sunni fundamentalist ruling family and Iran’s equally uncompromising Shia-based Islamic revolution.

WNU Editor: The Saudis see Iran arming the Houtis rebels who .... on the map .... are only 500 miles away from Mecca. In turn ... the Iranians see Saudi support for militants trying to overthrow Assad in Syria, as well as supporting anti-Shiite groups elsewhere .... Yemen included. For an outsider looking in .... there definitely is a proxy war happening right now .... and if current trends are any indication .... this is a proxy war that will continue to escalate and spread into our regions and conflicts.

Iran Accuses The U.S. And Saudis Of Conspiring To Influence Oil Prices

VOA: Iran Accuses Saudis of Oil Conspiracy

WNU Editor: I do not know about a U.S. - Saudi oil conspiracy .... but it is obvious that Saudi Arabia has made the decision to flood the markets with oil .... and consequences be damn. Iran ... in turn .... appears to now be realizing that the costs are going to be high .... and are deeply concerned. Sighhh .... it is always about the money.

Update #1: Iran: Saudi has to stop decline in oil prices -- Middle East Monitor
Update #2: US, S. Arabia Using Oil Price to Undermine Iran’s Stance in N. Talks -- Tasnim News Agency (Iran)