If there were ever any doubts about the decisive action that Saudi Arabia has taken in leading the intervention in Yemen, the support from the United Nations Security Council demonstrates that the international community is solidly behind the Kingdom and its allies.

It has imposed an arms embargo on the Houthi rebel movement. It has also sanctioned former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his son. Once an implacable foe of the Houthis, Saleh is seeking to use them to clamber back into the leadership from which his people ejected him. His link with the Houthis is a cynical and devilish alliance. By extension of course, Saleh is also lining himself up with Iran and its rising threat to the interests of the Arab world. This in itself is discredit enough to his name.

It is unfortunate though that the Security Council vote on the resolution was not unanimous. Russia alone abstained. Jordan which currently chairs the Council did not include Russian proposals in the final draft which it produced with the Gulf Arab states. The Russian amendments would have watered down the resolution and were rightly ignored.

Moscow is making itself no friends in the Arab world. Its amoral support for Bashar Assad in Syria has turned that country into a bloodbath on which the vampire IS terrorists are eagerly feeding. Now it is to sell Iran a missile defense system for its nuclear facilities. This will enable the Iranians to continue to defy the international community over the nuclear weapons which they deny they are developing.

In light of the Security Council resolution, will Iran now defy the UN and continue to supply arms to its Houthi clients? Or will it draw back from the inevitable confrontation if it persists in supporting their insurrection?

The UN resolution is also a call for peace. It demands that the rebels cease fighting. They must withdraw from all areas they have seized. It seems likely that some among the Houthis will be listening. The Saudi-led Operation Decisive Storm has clearly had a decisive effect. It remains accepted military wisdom that air power alone cannot halt a ground assault. But the evidence is mounting that the Houthis are taking heavy casualties. The Kingdom has sealed its land frontier with Yemen. What may once have seemed a porous border is now heavily patrolled by substantial units of the Saudi army. Oman too has locked down its frontier. The only viable way for Iran to continue its weapons supplies is by air or sea. Despite the posturing of a couple of Iranian warships off the Yemeni coast, maritime replenishment of the rebels is a diminishing option.

There has also been a decisive shift in sentiment among Yemeni army units that once supported the Saleh dictatorship. Former commanders are returning to their posts because they are not prepared to see their country torn apart. It is also clear that Al-Qaeda terrorists in Yemen are seeking to exploit the chaos around them. They are arguably an even greater threat to regional stability than the ragged Houthi rebels. As in Syria, Iran’s meddling is fostering a great and deadly terrorist evil. Even among some of the Houthis, there must be a dawning appreciation of the potential horrors that their insurrection could unleash.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has proposed that a new Yemeni government be formed. It is a siren call. Clearly dialogue is essential. But the plan is being promoted by the key player in the violence. The Iranians could bring about dialogue at a stroke had they told the rebels they were no longer supporting them. But that of course is not the real plan. The Iranian government is seeking to hide behind a peaceable mask while doing everything it can to stoke the conflict further. Yemen already has a legitimate government headed by President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. This administration is recognized internationally. It cannot be overthrown by Iran using a disaffected section of the Yemeni community.

The bloodshed has to stop. The rebels have to recognize their terrible error and give up. They must surrender their Iranian-supplied weaponry and go home. Their grievances must also be examined by President Hadi. A just settlement of their claims has to be a priority.

The alternative is more military action, more devastating airstrikes and more Houthi lives lost in a forlorn rebellion. The subtext message in the UN Security Council could not be clearer. The Houthis should have chosen their friends more carefully. If they persist, they are headed on the path for disaster. The Kingdom and its allies will see to this.