This is a loosing engagement for us.
Think of all of the maritime choke points in the world. What if Morocco started firing missiles at ships entering the Mediterranean Sea or if Indonesia or Malaysia effectively closed the Strait of Malacca?
Historically this kind of behavior has been dealt with either by bribes or war.
We should look for the cheapest solution that keeps American kids out of harm’s way. Iron bombs, and lots of them, targeted by drone (or indiscriminately spread if that’s OK) could make a big impression on these guys. We don’t need to establish a democracy here and we want no land. When the BBC and NPR send back pictures of the devastation, simply say “So what?”
The West laid the foundations for this by handing Somali pirates with kid gloves. What did they think was going to happen, we’d all start singing Kum-ba-Yah?