“We’re probably pursuing something unattainable in trying to actually make the Houthis be submissive.”
Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.
Matthew 26 : 31
Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali
Tue, April 1, 2025 at 1:41 AM GMT+34 min read
By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House has said that U.S. strikes in Yemen earlier this month killed the Houthi top missile expert, but the U.S. military has so far declined to confirm the death, and the identity of the Houthi commander in question is unclear.
procurator to deliver Paul over to the Jewish court.
Tertullus here descended to barefaced falsehood; for the character of Felix was base and contemptible. It was said of him, that “in the practice of all kinds of lust and cruelty, he exercised the power of a king with the temper of a slave.” —Tacitus, History, ch. 5, par. 9. Those who heard Tertullus knew that his flattering words were untrue, but their desire to secure the condemnation of Paul was stronger than their love of truth.
In his speech, Tertullus charged Paul with crimes which, if proved, would have resulted in his conviction for high treason against the government. “We have found this man a pestilent fellow,” declared the orator, “and a mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes: who also hath gone about to profane the temple.” Tertullus then stated that Lysias, the commandant of the garrison at Jerusalem, had violently taken Paul from the Jews when they were about to judge him by their ecclesiastical law, and had thus forced them to bring the matter before Felix. These statements were made with the design of inducing the procurator to deliver Paul over to the Jewish court. All the charges were vehemently supported by the Jews present, who made no effort to conceal their hatred of the prisoner. AA 419.2 – AA 420.1
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, in public remarks to CBS News the weekend after the March 15 strikes, said the first wave killed “their head missileer.”
For we have found this man a pestilent fellow, and a mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes:
Acts 24 : 5
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The substitution of the false for the true is the last act in the drama. When this substitution becomes universal, God will reveal himself. When the laws of men are exalted above the laws of God, when the powers of this earth try to force men to keep the first day of the week, know that the time has come for God to work. He will arise in His majesty, and will shake terribly the earth. He will come out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the world for their iniquity. The earth shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. RH April 23, 1901, Art. A, par. 7
The first target – their top missile guy
Waltz also touted the killing in a secret text chat, disclosed publicly by The Atlantic last week, saying: “The first target – their top missile guy – we had positive ID of him walking into his girlfriend’s building and it’s now collapsed.”
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have told Reuters that they were unaware of any independent U.S. military confirmation that such a person had been killed.
It is unusual for the Pentagon to not confirm a White House announcement about a military operation. Typically, the military publicly reveals details about high-value targets within days of a successful mission.
Asked for confirmation that the Houthi top missile expert was killed in a U.S. strike, the White House referred Reuters to the U.S. military. The U.S. military declined repeated requests, made over a week, to confirm the killing or to provide the name of the individual killed.
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Houthi representatives could not immediately be reached for comment during the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday.
According to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington-based think tank, Abdul Khaliq Badruddin Al-Houthi is the “de-facto commander of the Strategic Missile Forces.”
Festus knew nothing of the conspiracies of the Jews to murder Paul, and he was surprised at this appeal to Caesar. However, the words of the apostle put a stop to the proceedings of the court. “Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go.”
Thus it was that once more, because of hatred born of bigotry and self-righteousness, a servant of God was driven to turn for protection to the heathen. It was this same hatred that forced the prophet Elijah to flee for succor to the widow of Sarepta; and that forced the heralds of the gospel to turn from the Jews to proclaim their message to the Gentiles. And this hatred the people of God living in this age have yet to meet. Among many of the professing followers of Christ there is the same pride, formalism, and selfishness, the same spirit of oppression, that held so large a place in the Jewish heart. In the future, men claiming to be Christ’s representatives will take a course similar to that followed by the priests and rulers in their treatment of Christ and the apostles. In the great crisis through which they are soon to pass, the faithful servants of God will encounter the same hardness of heart, the same cruel determination, the same unyielding hatred. AA 430.3 – AA 430.4
Mohammed Albasha, whose Basha Report risk advisory firm researches open-source information about Yemen, has tallied Houthi reports of more than 40 Houthi fighters killed in action in air strikes in March.
Nobody as senior as Abdul Khaliq Badruddin Al-Houthi has been identified yet, he said, nor is he aware of any death announced on Houthi television of a person whose profile would be a match for the individual mentioned by Waltz.
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Still, the Houthis don’t always identify their dead right away, and leaders of the missile forces are considered “secret,” he cautioned.
Michael Knights, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said whomever Waltz referred to would be an Iranian-trained missile specialist “doing the hands-on control of this system.”
“If they think that they got that guy, they probably got that guy,” Knights said.
NO MENTION OF MISSILE EXPERT IN PUBLIC REMARKS
U.S. Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich, director for operations at the Joint Staff, did not mention a missileer in his public remarks about the strikes on March 17. However, he said an aerial drone facility “was struck, with several key leaders.”
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In a post on Truth Social on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the Houthis had been “decimated” by the U.S. strikes.
“Many of their Leaders are no longer with us,” he wrote, without giving further details.
When the leading churches of the United States, uniting upon such points of doctrine as are held by them in common, shall influence the State to enforce their decrees and to sustain their institutions, then Protestant America will have formed an image of the Roman hierarchy, and the infliction of civil penalties upon dissenters will inevitably result. GC88 445.1
The strikes, the biggest U.S. military operation in the Middle East since Trump took office in January, are meant to force the Iran-aligned Houthis to renounce attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, including against U.S. warships.
The group has carried out over 100 attacks on shipping since Israel’s war with Hamas began in late 2023, saying they are acting in solidarity with Gaza’s Palestinians.
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The attacks have disrupted global commerce and set the U.S. military off on a costly campaign to intercept missiles.
war against a coalition
Under the leadership of Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the Houthi militia numbers in the tens of thousands and has acquired a sophisticated arsenal of drones and ballistic missiles.
Houthi leaders have said they will escalate attacks in response to the U.S. campaign.
Knights said the U.S. strikes are far more intense than those carried out under President Joe Biden’s administration. Still, he questioned whether a group that endured years of war against a coalition led by Saudi Arabia would submit.
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“They are very pain tolerant, so they’re the worst people to try and publicly coerce,” Knights said.
“We’re probably pursuing something unattainable in trying to actually make the Houthis be submissive.”
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali; Editing by Don Durfee and Rosalba O’Brien)
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