🇾🇪⚔️🇾🇪 ‘A f***-up of epic proportions’: Blame game begins after Iran-backed Houthis’ lightning advance down Red Sea coast

The desperate pleas for air cover from Yemeni generals started coming mid-morning on Thursday. An advance by the Iran-backed Houthis toward Yemen’s strategic port city of Mocha was in full swing, and backup support from chief ally Saudi Arabia was nowhere in sight.

“The Houthis committed everything they had – waves upon waves of fighters … along with their available ballistic missiles and weapons,” a senior Yemeni source attached to their military forces told CNN. The source said he contacted the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) and was assured the US was “watching the situation closely and that Saudi air support was coming.”

“But the air support never came,” the source said. “And Mocha has now fallen.”

Hours later, on Friday, the Houthis captured another key coastal asset, Perim Island, at the mouth of the Red Sea. The island splits the Bab al-Mandeb Strait in two, giving Tehran de facto control over another key shipping route.

The swift fall of Mocha and the lack of resistance have led to finger-pointing and recriminations among US allies.

“The failure this time is not with the Yemenis,” a regional source told CNN on Thursday. “It’s a disaster made in (Washington) DC and Riyadh.

The regional source told CNN that it was “a complete failure of political leadership” amid fierce squabbling and delayed decision-making in Riyadh.

“There was not one air strike throughout the day yesterday (by Saudi support forces), although there were minute-by-minute updates,” the regional source added. “It’s a Saudi-American f**k up of epic proportions.”

Not everyone agrees. Mohammed al-Basha, who has served as an adviser to the US government and private sector on risks emerging from the Arabian Peninsula, argues that blame also rests with Yemeni leaders, whose internal divisions jeopardized their defenses.

“This goes back to a deeper problem in the anti-Houthi coalition,” the DC-based adviser told CNN. “There is no political cohesion.”

“I think everybody was aware of the Houthis’ push towards the west coast. The writings on the wall were very clear,” he added. “There’s no united command and control in Yemen.”

Houthi fighters arrived in Mocha on Thursday to find Yemeni battalions that were severely depleted – their rosters were filled with “ghost names” receiving salaries, and the actual strength of the army was only about 20% of what it was on paper, a Western source with knowledge of the operations told CNN.

🔗 https://edition.cnn.com/2026/09/12/middleeast/yemen-houthi-saudi-us-blame-intl

🇾🇪❌🇸🇦 — Alerts in Abha City and Khamis Mushait Governorate, southern Saudi Arabia, have been lifted.

🇸🇦⚔️🇸🇦 Saudi-backed mercenaries in Yemen shot down a KSA (Saudi) operated Chinese CH-4B MALE UAV worth around $4 million

The mercenaries boasted on social media about their kill claiming it was operated by the Houthis even though the Houthis do not have Chinese drones in their arsenal.

@CIG_telegram

🇺🇸🕊🇮🇷 U.S. Cuts Back Air Defense for Tankers Traveling Through the Strait of Hormuz

The Financial Times reported that the U.S. is limiting the amount of air defense they will be providing to ships that are passing through the Strait of Hormuz, as attacks on commercial shipping from both sides have increased.

They said that emails sent by NCAGS (Naval Cooperation and Guidance for Shipping) to maritime advisers, show that there will only be two time slots per day where cover will be provided.

🔗 https://unwall.app/www.ft.com/content/d4b4105e-d91f-48bb-820e-64290e916f5e?syn-25a6b1a6=1

🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🌹 Texans scream at Ted Cruz that Mamdani, Talarico, and El Sayed should all be shot.

📎 AF Post

🏈 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 Ted Cruz gets aggressively booed by Texas crowd on College GameDay

📎 FactPost

🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 On Monday, the first ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will meet in Cardiff to sign a cooperation agreement calling for the right to hold independence referendums.

The SNP, Plaid Cymru and Sinn Féin leaders will discuss cooperation on the economy, energy, Europe and self-determination.

John Swinney, Scotland’s First Minister and leader of the SNP, said the UK’s current system is “not sustainable.”

🔗 Clash Report

🇨🇦🤝🇪🇺 Canada is ditching the U.S. and is pursuing closer economic ties with the EU contradicting Trump's claims of Canada "wanting a deal very badly".

Mark Carney is accelerating plans to tie Canada more closely to Europe after U.S. trade negotiations collapsed, with officials exploring deeper integration in defense, energy, technology, research, and strategic supply chains.

Carney has instructed his special envoy to Europe to examine arrangements short of full EU or single-market membership.

He has also floated the title “Associate Member of the European Union” in discussions with European leaders.

Officials on both sides are studying how Canadian companies, workers and services could gain easier access to European markets in sectors including energy, artificial intelligence, critical minerals, semiconductors and defense.

The talks aim to reduce Canada’s heavy dependence on the U.S., which receives two-thirds of Canadian exports.

Carney has described the deterioration in relations with Washington as “a rupture, not a transition,” signaling that Ottawa is preparing for a longer-term realignment rather than a temporary dispute.

“This is Canada turning from looking at itself as a North American nation to a trans-Atlantic nation,” said a senior Canadian official.

Carney has held frequent talks with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as Canada negotiated a $25 billion purchase of German submarines.

Canadian diplomats have also met in Berlin to discuss broader defense cooperation.

During preliminary G-7 meetings in Toulouse, Canadian and European officials identified 11 areas where cooperation could be deepened, with an emphasis on reducing dependence on U.S. technology, defense equipment and trade.

The discussions also include underwater cables, data centers, cloud infrastructure and satellite networks that would sit outside the control of major U.S. technology companies.

Carney has spent months lobbying European leaders including Emmanuel Macron, Alexander Stubb, Giorgia Meloni, Friedrich Merz and Jonas Støre.

European governments were initially cautious, partly over concerns about provoking Washington. But officials said attitudes shifted as doubts about U.S. reliability grew.

Senior EU officials have since told European ambassadors that a successful agreement could leave Canada more closely tied to the bloc than any other country outside Europe.

French discussions have even included the possibility of allowing Canadians to live and work in Europe without visas.

Carney is also pushing for closer links between Canadian and European research institutions and wants Canada to participate in the EU’s study-abroad program.

🔗 https://clashreport.com/world/articles/canada-explores-eu-membership-after-us-trade-war-i3232afgly

🇺🇸⛽️ Costco Is Now Rationing Motor Oil Because the Global Shortage Is Getting Real

A Kirkland Signature oil change has nearly doubled in price, but that's not the most concerning change to how Costco's selling lubricants these days.

Not only does 10 quarts of Kirkland Signature full-synthetic now cost $58 when it used to go for as low as $30, but stores are now imposing a two-per-customer, per-week limit.

The obvious culprit is supply—or, rather, a lack thereof. Demand remains strong as ever as global stock has dwindled due to our ongoing Middle East entanglement. As The Auto Wire highlighted in its own story unpacking the factors at hand, motor oil ultimately comes out of the same barrel that also gives us gasoline and diesel, and right now, refineries can earn more money finishing crude into gas compared to what Costco stocks on its shelves. We’re all getting the short end of the stick at the pump as it is, so it’s not difficult to imagine the pressure the motor oil market is facing.

In the background, though, this is more than a matter of simple economics. Over the years, oil chemistries have gotten more sophisticated to cope with the stresses of tinier engines pushing bigger boost while also mitigating their environmental impact. That’s led to more rigorous testing and higher standards, including a set of rules by the American Petroleum Institute that took effect at the start of the decade.

🔗 https://www.thedrive.com/news/costco-is-now-rationing-motor-oil-because-the-global-shortage-is-getting-real

🇺🇸⚔️🇮🇷 Insane footage showing U.S. forces launching dozens of Patriot PAC-3 interceptor missiles from Muwaffaq Salti Airbase in Jordan, during the Iranian ballistic missile attack three days ago.

Up to 70 Patriot interceptors were launched from Muwaffaq Salti Airbase alone during this attack.

Despite the massive salvo of interceptors, Iranian missiles still scored hits on American bases in Jordan, destroying aircraft and drone shelters and damaging an unknown number of helicopters, MALE UCAVs and fighter jets.

🔗 AMK Mapping 🇳🇿 (@AMK_Mapping_)

🇾🇪⚔️🇾🇪 Latest Map of the Military Situation in Taiz Front

🟡 The Houthis, with the support of popular committees, advanced on the western front of Taiz province and reached the important heights of Jabal Jardad and Jabal Habashi, liberating the heights of Al-Da'if, Bani Omar, and the western villages of these heights from the control of elements of the resigned government.

Clashes are currently ongoing around the Akkad area and Jabal Jardad.

✍️ The objective of the Yemeni forces in this movement is to cut off the western road of Taiz, which is the only connection route for the Islah Party's militants and Tariq Saleh's elements with the southern cities of Yemen. This road connects Taiz to the town of Al-Turbah (under the control of Tariq Saleh's elements) and ultimately to Aden. Cutting this important road places the city of Taiz under a complete siege and provides the ground for cleansing this city from the control of the Takfiri elements of the Al-Islah Party and other factions affiliated with the Saudi coalition.

🔗 IWN

🇬🇧 Labour admits 200,000 UK families pocket more in benefits than the average working Briton earns

With taxpayers already forced to pay up for migrant housing, councils tearing down the nation's flag, WFH civil servants' heating bills and more, it has now emerged that they are also funding above-average lifestyles in Britain.

Just days ago, Lord Truscott challenged Labour to reveal exactly how many benefit recipients "earn" more than the national average wage.

For the financial year ending 2025, she said, there were 200,000 families in the UK who claimed more than £39,039 in "state support".

This includes tax credits and all benefits, including Universal Credit, the state pension and Personal Independence Payment (Pip).

That's more than the entire population of Bournemouth, Peterborough, or Bolton.

"Our welfare system is so out of touch it pays those on benefits more than those who go out to work," Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately told The Sun.

🔗 https://www.gbnews.com/money/dwp-benefits-fury-labour-uk-families-working-britons

🇬🇧 Stunning data shows being on sickness benefits 'pays more than joining the British Army'

Young people can receive more by receiving sickness benefits than they would by joining the Army, new data has shown.

A study carried out by the Telegraph shows those who claim handouts can actually earn more than £2,000 a year more than an Army recruit's take-home pay.

The new analysis conducted by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) shows that young people can be better off on benefits than joining the Army.

A newly recruited private earns a salary of £27,282, which after tax and National Insurance translates to a take-home pay of £23,163 after income tax and National Insurance.

If you compare this with someone who is under-25 years old, and already receiving sickness benefits and housing support, the latter can claim £25,444 a year tax-free - meaning they are £2,282 better off.

Additionally, benefits are expected to increase by 3 per cent in April 2027, which would see the top rate of personal independence payments (PIPs) pass £200 a week.

🔗 https://www.aol.co.uk/articles/stunning-data-shows-being-sickness-000300000.html

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇬🇧 Westminster 'must prepare for a post-UK future,' John Swinney says

THE momentum for constitutional change is “undeniable” and Westminster “must prepare for a post-UK future”, John Swinney has said ahead of meetings with the first ministers of Wales and Northern Ireland.

Scotland’s First Minister will speak to Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth and Sinn Féin vice president Michelle O’Neill in Cardiff on Monday, as well as a series of engagements with the Welsh Government.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Swinney said there could be “no clearer sign that the status quo is not sustainable” and that Westminster “must prepare for a post-UK future”.

He said: “Every nation across these islands is standing at a moment of incredible constitutional opportunity.

“There is a growing consensus that the Westminster system simply is not fit for purpose and does not work for ordinary people. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has accepted that himself – and the people of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have made it clear at the ballot box.

“For the first time ever, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are led by a pro-independence First Ministers.

“There could be no clearer sign that the status quo is not sustainable – and that Westminster must prepare for a post-UK future.

“And crucially, for the first time since 2014, there is a British Prime Minister who has publicly accepted the democratic principle of self-determination.

“The momentum behind serious constitutional change is undeniable. Andy Burnham must now be facing up to the idea that he will go down in history as the final Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.”

🔗 https://www.thenational.scot/news/26545086.westminster-must-prepare-post-uk-future--john-swinney-says/