The Houthis refuse to back down

The Houthis in Yemen have become a force to be reckoned with. It seems amazing that this rebel militia force, albeit armed and backed by Iran, can present such a danger not just to commercial shipping in the Red Sea but to the US Navy and other allied navies patrolling the region. The Houthis held off the Saudi-led coalition which launched airstrikes for years until Riyadh had had enough and now it's the turn of the western coalition. Despite all the US-led coalition firepower on display in the Red Sea and eastern Mediterranean, the Houthis just carry on firing missiles and drones every day as if they have an inexhaustible supply. The counter-attacks which the US calls defensive strikes have destroyed some of their weaponry and command and control centres in Yemen. But all to no avail. Meanwhile, the US, in particular, is spending huge sums to shoot down the cruise missiles and ballistic missiles and drones. The US Navy has reportedly fired about 100 of its stock of Standard missiles each of which costs between $2 million and $4 million, depending on the variant used. So that's a bill of $200 million-£400 million for knocking down drones costing a few thousand dollars and missiles probably costing a few hundred thousand dollars. The US and Israeli navies try their best to intercept the cargo boats bringing the weaponry from Iran to Yemen but, patently, they are failing to stop the steady flow of arms from Tehran. The mighty deterrent capability of the US Navy has so far failed to deter the Houthis.