The Houthis declare war on Israel: who is the group armed to the teeth? The Houthis declare war on Israel: who is the group armed to the teeth?

“With the help of God Almighty, our forces have fired a large number of ballistic missiles and drones against Israeli enemy targets in the occupied territories,” a Houthi military spokesman said. The attacks will continue until Israel stops “its aggression.” According to the Israeli military, the rockets were intercepted in the northern part of the Red Sea before they could reach the resort town of Elath.

Who are the Houthis?

The Houthis belong to a far-flung family of Shiite scholars. After nine years of civil war, the group controls more than a third of Yemen’s territory, mainly areas in the north of the country bordering Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia’s attempt to defeat the Houthis militarily with the support of local Yemeni tribes has failed.

Why do the Houthis want war with Israel now?

The Houthis see themselves as part of the ‘Axis of Resistance’, inspired and financed by Iran, which also includes the Lebanese Hezbollah and armed groups in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. At a time when the Arab public is outraged by the violence in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis are trying to build “regional legitimacy” with their declaration of war.

But there are also internal reasons for the start of a conflict with Israel, writes Ibrahim Jalal in an article for the Washington Middle East Institute: “The Houthis want to divert attention from the growing dissatisfaction with their government, boost the morale of their fighters and their position in the ongoing peace talks with Saudi Arabia.”

Why is Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the world, armed to the teeth?

There has been war in Yemen since the 1960s, with some minor interruptions. The tribes in the mountainous country have always been heavily armed. Smuggling of weapons and ammunition is the main source of income for many Yemenis. During the Yemeni Civil War, regional powers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates also supplied Yemen with vast amounts of military equipment.

What role does Iran play?

Direct Iranian arms supplies to the Houthis are difficult because the US and Saudi Arabia control air and sea routes. Tehran has therefore set up a local arms industry for the Houthis with the help of Hezbollah ‘experts’ sent to Yemen. The blueprints for Hezbollah’s rockets fired into Israel in recent days come from Iran and Lebanon.

Are these missiles dangerous?

Despite the geographical distances, the Houthis have shown in recent years that they can cause enormous damage in Saudi Arabia and the Emirates with their missiles. In September 2019, the Houthis used drone and cruise missile attacks to shut down more than half of Saudi oil production for a week. However, the attacks may also have used missiles fired directly from Iran.