Ahmad Algohbary is a freelance Yemeni journalist who has reported on the Yemen war for international media since war broke out in 2015. His work has appeared in The Guardian and Al Jazeera English, among other outlets. As Co-Director of Photography, Aloghbary filmed the 2018 documentary “Yemen Skies of Terror,” which was nominated for Emmy and Sheffield Awards, and won an online journalism award. Algohbary has also launched a public funding campaign via his Twitter account to provide support for child victims of the war. He tweets at @AhmadAlgohbary.
As the Israel-Iran conflict experiences a shaky ceasefire appearing to hold for now, Yemen's Houthi movement has emerged as one of its most vocal and active regional players. Launching missile and drone attacks toward Israel and threatening to resume targeting vessels in the Red Sea, the Houthis—also known as Ansar Allah—say their operations underpin a religious and moral duty to defend Palestinians in Gaza and their Iranian allies. But their actions raise questions about Yemen's sovereignty, national priorities and its place within the Iran-led Axis of Resistance, as the Yemeni people struggle to meet basic needs.
The Red Sea has been a focal point of Houthi military operations since late 2023. The group uses drones and missiles to target commercial ships it claims are linked to Israel, prompting global shipping lanes to reroute while raising insurance premiums. It has also targeted military vessels—particularly U.S. ships.
In an exclusive interview, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a senior member of the Houthi Political Bureau, framed the group's role as religiously legitimate and strategically necessary. "Our choice is peace, and war is only legitimate for self-defense or to support the oppressed."
"The Palestinian people are facing genocide. As we have never abandoned them, we will not abandon those who support them, especially Iran," he added.
American and British warships responded by striking Houthi positions between March and May 2025, with a particular focus on Houthi positions in Sana'a, Hodeidah and Saada. Following these operations, Save the Children—a leading humanitarian group—reported that the fighting destroyed civilian infrastructure and killed hundreds of non-combatants.
Israeli media reports that Israel has allegedly marked multiple Houthi leaders for assassination. "The only thing that eases my pain as I watch the killing of Gaza's women and children," Al-Bukhaiti responded, "is remembering that I am now on their list too. If death is inevitable, I would rather meet God as a martyr defending the oppressed."
A major uptick in fighting led to a loose ceasefire between the group and Washington that did not include Israel. As such, Al-Bukhaiti confirmed plans to continue escalating operations against Israeli cities in proportion to what he called the "Zionist regime's genocidal campaign," insisting that the group made an independent decision to intervene militarily, though in coordination with Iran and Palestinian factions.
For the Houthis, alignment offers protection and purpose. It elevates their status from a local militia to a regional actor by bolstering their fighting capabilities. But it also entangles them in conflicts not of their making, drawing Yemen deeper into regional hostilities that carry domestic implications.
- Ahmad Algohbary
His group has consistently attacked Israel since. But with the recent Israel-Iran war, they are directly threatening American forces again, with Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree threatened to target U.S. warships in the Red Sea if Washington joined Israel in any attack on Iran.
"Any American aggression that supports the Israeli enemy cannot be ignored," he said.
The warning followed Israel's late-June strikes on Iranian military and nuclear assets. The Houthis framed that operation as part of the wider Houthi commitment to defending the so-called "resistance." However, the group did not directly target U.S. forces after they bombed Iranian nuclear sites on June 22.
Still, the Houthis are politically and ideologically aligned with Iran, which remains strong and is not a new development. Over the past decade, they have received financial and military support from Tehran, including training. A 2022 U.N. Panel of Experts on Yemen report confirmed that Iran supplied the Houthis with missile components, drones and naval mines in violation of the 2015 Yemen arms embargo under U.N. Security Council Resolution 2216.
These conflicting dynamics obfuscate the group's intentions, reflecting an inconsistency in their approach to shared enemies with Iran. For the Houthis, alignment offers protection and purpose. It elevates their status from a local militia to a regional actor by bolstering their fighting capabilities. But it also entangles them in conflicts not of their making, drawing Yemen deeper into regional hostilities that carry domestic implications.
Yet, conversely, Houthi leaders see their position in the battered Axis as beneficial domestically. As Al-Bukhaiti argued, "We froze our internal fronts because stopping [the] genocide in Gaza has become our top priority. This confrontation with Israel and the U.S. has, in fact, united our domestic front and enhanced opportunities for peace."
But within Houthi-controlled areas, public opinion hardly reflects unity. In interviews conducted in Dhamar, Sana'a and Al-Hudaydah, Yemenis offered sharply contrasting views.
Mohammed Abdullah Al-Washli, a biomedical engineer from Dhamar, expressed strong support. "It gives us peace of mind that we're doing our duty toward our Palestinian brothers. The alliance with Iran is necessary for Islamic unity and for liberating Palestine."
Al-Bukhaiti confirmed plans to continue escalating operations against Israeli cities in proportion to what he called the "Zionist regime's genocidal campaign," insisting that the group made an independent decision to intervene militarily, though in coordination with Iran and Palestinian factions
- Ahmad Algohbary
In contrast, Mohammed Ahmed, a geologist in Sana'a, accused the Houthis of hypocrisy. "They claim to fight for Gaza while oppressing Yemenis. Their alliance with Iran is sectarian and undermines our Arab identity. Yemen must come first."
Another interviewee in Al-Hudaydah, who asked to remain anonymous, added, "There's no justification for what they're doing. They can't even provide basic services to Yemenis. How can they help Palestine? People can't speak openly without risking prison or worse."
The group is certainly aware of this conflicting domestic situation, even if it views its international efforts as bolstering its legitimacy at home. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have documented arbitrary arrests, torture and enforced disappearances in Houthi areas, particularly targeting dissenters and journalists. They have taken aid workers and U.N. staff hostage as it seeks to strongarm those under its control and the international community amid serious domestic failings.
Internationally, the Houthi intervention has triggered wider concern. Their Red Sea attacks have disrupted a critical global trade route and complicated Yemen's already fragile peace talks. Domestically, the shift in focus away from local governance comes at a high price as the group's actions have brought substantial destruction to civilian infrastructure, exacerbating domestic problems.
The U.N. estimates that 19.5 million Yemenis require humanitarian assistance, with over 17 million facing acute food insecurity. Yet basic services continue to crumble. Power outages, unpaid salaries and infrastructure collapse are daily realities in Houthi-controlled areas.
Some argue that by focusing on external conflicts, the Houthis are abandoning urgent internal priorities to distract from domestic shortcomings. Resources are funneled to military operations—not healthcare, education or economic stabilization.
Still, direct Houthi attacks against Israel, including rocket attacks and the Red Sea blockade, have transformed them into icons of resistance for many across the Arab world and in some Western pro-Palestine circles. Their military defiance has been widely circulated on social media and is praised in regional discourse as a rare show of Arab solidarity with Gaza.
Thus, Houthi actions have placed Yemen at a strategic crossroads. Their role in the long-running Israel-Iran conflict has earned them visibility in the Axis of Resistance. But it also risks alienating large parts of the population while deepening Yemen's isolation and divisions.
The deeper question now facing Yemen is not one of foreign policy, but national identity, governance and survival. Will the Houthis continue down the path of regional confrontation, regardless of the cost? Or will they reorient inward, toward recovery and reconciliation?
In a nation exhausted by war, the answer to that question may define the group's fate—and that of Yemen—for years to come.
