PRESS RELEASE
Pentagon Reiterates U.S. Support for Saudi War in Yemen; Bombing Continues
April 24, 2015 (EIRNS)—Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren confirmed to reporters today that the Iranian convoy that had been on its way to Yemen has turned around and is heading back to Iran. As of about 11:00 A.M. EST, the convoy was about halfway up the coast of Oman, heading in a northeasterly direction at about 6 knots. "This appears to be a de-escalation of the tensions of earlier in the week," Warren said.
While the potential for a U.S.-Iran confrontation may have de-escalated, the United States continues to support the Saudi war against Yemen. Today U.S. Central Command spokesman Col. Patrick Ryder confirmed that the United States continues to provide intelligence and logistical support to the Saudis and will continue to do so.
On the ground, the war is anything but over, despite the Saudi declaration on April 21 that they were suspending the bombing campaign. There were at least 20 air strikes yesterday across the country, according to various news reports, and the fighting on the ground between the Houthi rebels and their allies and the remnants of the Saudi-backed Hadi regime continued.
The World Health Organization reported on April 21 that, between March 19 and April 17, violence had killed 944 people and wounded 3,487, and warned that health services in Yemen were on the verge of collapse. UNICEF said today that among the dead are 115 children, with another 172 maimed. These figures, as the UN has said previously, should be regarded as underestimates, as any authoritative ability to count the dead and the wounded has, itself, been severely damaged by the war.
