Welcome to The View from the Front podcast. My name is Stan and this is the Jan. 18th edition.
You can listen to the podcast by clicking the blue button above. Or, you can watch the video below on YouTube.
I really hope you get something out of it.
Please note: There is also an un-edited, AI-generated transcript, that you can find by clicking the Transcript button at upper right, under the podcast player device.
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If you just happened to stumble by, let me say a quick word about what we’re doing here.
For those who don’t know, my name is Stan R. Mitchell, and I’m a prior Marine and journalist.
Every week, I primarily do three things with my podcast:
Cover emerging hotspots and foreign policy news that you absolutely should know. (Why I focus on foreign policy...)
Work to unite our country and remind us of how lucky we are to live in America. (My thoughts on the division in this country...)
And finally, I always share plenty of motivation and wisdom at the end of each episode.
Take a listen to the podcast. I really hope you get something out of it.
Selected source notes for podcast and transcript above.
U.S. news:
U.S., Partners' Forces Strike Houthi Military Targets in Yemen
U.S. and partners' forces conducted defensive strikes against military targets in Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen yesterday following a series of attacks launched by the armed rebel group against commercial ships operating in the Red Sea.
The joint strikes were carried out by the U.S. and United Kingdom with nonoperational support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands. They targeted Houthi missile, radar and unmanned areal vehicle capabilities used to carry out attacks against vessels operating in international waters.
President Joe Biden said the strikes serve as a "a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation in one of the world's most critical commercial routes."
"I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce, as necessary," he said in a statement following the strikes.
In a follow-up announcement, the Dept of Defense stated:
Those targets included command and control nodes, munitions depots, launching systems, production facilities and air defense radar systems used by the Houthi's to carry out attacks against vessels operating in international waters.
What Yemen’s Houthis gain through their Red Sea strikes
The Houthis, formally known as Ansar Allah, or the “partisans of God,” are a rebel movement that seized control of Sanaa in 2014. Their thin ideological and tactical links to the theocratic regime in Iran have grown thicker in the years since, as Yemen buckled under a brutal civil war that saw the Houthis mostly stave off a Saudi and Emirati-led coalition that was also armed and backed by the United States.
While ordinary Yemenis still cope with economic collapse and a sprawling humanitarian calamity, the Houthis hold sway over large swaths of the country, actively threaten Gulf neighbors with missile and drone strikes and can project their power over one of the world’s most strategic maritime passageways.
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Analysts contend that this new phase of hostilities may strengthen the Houthis, rather than weaken them. The aftermath of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on southern Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas has seen Israel conduct an operation unprecedented in its scale and ferocity, reducing much of Gaza to rubble, killing more than 23,000 people and immiserating Gaza’s population. The Houthis are part of the so-called “axis of resistance,” a network of Iran-aligned militant groups around the Middle East. While militias like Lebanon’s Hezbollah seem to want to avoid a direct escalation with Israel, the Houthis thrust themselves into the spotlight by taking up the mantle of the Palestinian cause. They insist their actions in the Red Sea will stop when Israel ceases its bombardments.
“They are gaining what they want, which is to appear as the boldest regional player when it comes to confronting the international coalition, which is largely in favor of Israel and does not care for people in Gaza,” Laurent Bonnefoy, a researcher who studies Yemen at Sciences Po in Paris, told my colleagues. “This generates some form of support for them, internationally as well as internally.”
Houthis redesignated as 'global terrorists' by Biden
U.S. forces recovered Iranian warheads in Navy SEAL mission gone awry
American military personnel recovered Iranian-made missile warheads and related components during a ship-boarding mission near Somalia last week that disrupted the weapons resupply of militants in Yemen but left two elite Navy SEALs lost at sea, U.S. defense officials said.
A massive search-and-rescue operation is ongoing in the Arabian Sea, where the incident occurred Thursday. The SEALs moved to board the vessel, described by officials as a dhow, a type of trading vessel sometimes used by smugglers to carry illicit weapons. The dhow lacked proper identification, raising suspicions that it was smuggling arms.
As The Washington Post and other media previously reported, Thursday’s nighttime operation, backed by helicopters and drones, took place in rough seas. When one of the SEALs slipped from a ladder while attempting to climb aboard the dhow, the second, having witnessed their comrade fall into the water, dove in to help, officials have said. Both were swept away by the powerful swells. Neither has been publicly identified.
Inspector General Initiates Review of DOD Procedures Following Austin Hospitalization
" assess whether the DOD's policies and procedures are sufficient to ensure timely and appropriate notifications and the effective transition of authorities as may be warranted due to health-based or other unavailability of senior leadership," the memorandum said.
During a briefing today, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said the department welcomes the review and will cooperate with the IG to ensure its success.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, in late December for surgery to treat prostate cancer. He returned home the following day.
On Monday of last week, the secretary was again admitted to Walter Reed with complications related to that earlier surgery. Those complications included nausea, along with abdominal, hip and leg pain. In response to those complications, Austin underwent additional treatment at Walter Reed, and he remains there recovering from those additional procedures.
After Austin's admission to Walter Reed last week, the Defense Department failed to properly notify appropriate parties, including President Joe Biden, about the secretary's condition.
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Ryder also told reporters that while certain notifications hadn't been made while Austin was in the hospital, the Defense Department's command and control was not at risk.
"This is an important point, that during this situation at no time was there a gap in command and control for the Department of Defense," he said. "At all times, national security was in good hands and either the secretary or the deputy defense secretary were at the helm."
Middle East news:
Iranian strikes in Iraq stoke fears of further Middle East escalation (gift link)
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired ballistic missiles at what it said were members of the Islamic State group in Syria and an Israeli spy site in Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdistan region, according to statements published by state media.
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In Iraq, the missiles struck the “espionage headquarters” of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency that had been used to plan “terrorist” acts against Iran, the Revolutionary Guard statement said. Iraqi and Kurdish officials denied the claims. The Israeli prime minister’s press office declined to comment on Iran’s assertions.
On Tuesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani called the attack on Irbil “an act of aggression against Iraq and a setback to the historical relationship with Iran.” He pledged to “take all legal and diplomatic response measures.”
Ukraine news:
Britain pledges over $3 billion for Ukraine military aid in 2024
France to give Ukraine more cruise missiles, plans security pact
France will supply Ukraine with about 40 more Scalp-EG cruise missiles and hundreds of bombs in coming weeks, French President Emmanuel Macron said in a press conference Tuesday evening.
Military intelligence: Railways in western Russia hit by sabotage attacks
Railway tracks in Russia's Saratov, Yaroslavl, and Nizhny Novgorod oblasts have been targeted in sabotage attacks, Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) reported on Jan. 17.
"Unknown opponents of Putin's regime once again burned several relay cabinets on the railway" and other parts of the track used for military logistics, the HUR said.
The agency shared a video compilation of what appeared to show multiple arson attacks on relay boxes and other parts of track infrastructure.
As a result of the reported sabotage, railway traffic on certain track sections was "paralyzed," according to the HUR.
While the HUR did not state whether it was involved in the attacks, a number of incidents on Russian railways have been linked to Ukrainian intelligence services in recent months.
Latvian-led coalition to arm Ukraine with 'thousands' of drones
European Parliament to vote on resolution on stripping Hungary of EU voting rights
U S supplied humvee anti-drone system seems to be working
US Bradleys Are Killing It on Ukraine Frontlines
China news:
Gift link: After attempts to meddle in Taiwan’s elections fail, China takes stock
For Beijing, Lai’s victory is a loss that deepens anxiety about its ability to bring Taiwan under its control, a long-held goal of the ruling Communist Party and a key part of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s legacy. The result gives Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which Beijing refuses to engage with, an unprecedented third term.
“A Lai win will mean that Xi loses face,” said Chen Fang-Yu, assistant professor of political science at Soochow University in Taipei. “It means his Taiwan policy has failed. So now he must do something to show his muscle.”
[Taiwan elects Lai Ching-te as president. China calls it a dangerous choice.]
In the months ahead, Beijing is expected to dial up its efforts to intimidate Taiwan using familiar coercive tactics including military harassment and economic pressure.
But actual conflict or invasion is unlikely — at least for now — officials and analysts in Taiwan and the United States say. China’s immediate actions will be tempered by a desire to maintain recently stabilized relations with Washington.
Motivation and inspiration:
I always like to share a few from the Bible, because that book has become such a source of strength and wisdom and calm for me during the past year.
Proverbs 2: 1-11
And, I always like to end with this one:
And with that, thanks for joining us this week on The View from the Front.
If you can, consider at some point becoming a paid subscriber.
That’s it for this edition.
Dealing with PTSD? Emotionally or mentally at rock bottom? Here’s the link that I mention in each podcast: Be like Ozzie; go near your master. (The power of prayer. Part 1.)
Love my moderate, optimistic view of politics and want to know more about how I see things?
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As a reminder, please be kind and try your best to love your fellow Americans.
So many men and women have sacrificed, fought, and died to keep this country together the past 240-plus years. Please work daily to unite our country again. The vast majority of Americans are decent, loving, great people.
Also, please try to be a better person each and every day. Try to be kinder on social media and how you interact with others with whom you disagree.
Please join me again in our next episode, and please stay safe until then.
Don’t forget: You can comment anytime — I try to monitor those. You can also reach out privately at: authorstanrmitchell@yahoo.com. (You can say “hi,” vent, or send news tips! I love all three of those things!)
Love and peace,
Stan R. Mitchell
P.S. Don’t forget to check out my books. I’ve written a CIA/Marine sniper series, a detective series, a private investigator series, an action-packed Western, a motivational self-help book about President Obama, and two realistic war novels: one about World War II and one about Afghanistan. You can find all of these books on Amazon.
Want to know more about me? Click here: About me. You can also learn more about my journey here: Writers are crazy, and I’m crazier than most.
Podcast Episode 1-18-24 of The View from the Front. (Includes video.)