As the Houthis continue to make their impact felt internationally, experts around the world discuss the threat posed by the group.
Yemeni Houthis are putting global observers on edge with increasingly aggressive actions in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, potentially affecting approximately 12% of global maritime trade.
The current threat and developments to expect were broken down on Aug. 13 by experts with the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, in their webinar “The Houthi Factor: Gaza, the Axis of Resistance, and Middle East Stability.”
Hosted by Ibrahim Jalal, a nonresident scholar at the Center, regional experts Abdulkhaleq Abdullah, Tamer Badawi, Afrah Nasser, and Nadwa Al-Dawsari, spoke on these complex geopolitical tensions.
Putting the Houthis in a greater Middle Eastern context, Abdullah outlined how the other Gulf states view the regional risks caused by the Houthis, and by extension Iran. The Houthis are seen as just another Iranian threat, which the Gulf states are used to, he said.
“A threat is a threat, and we try not to dramatize it,” Abdullah said.
Putting the Houthis into the larger context of the Iranian Axis of Resistance, the region uses its decades old playbook on de-escalation, he said. These tactics are increasingly important as Houthi aggression spreads outside of Middle Eastern dynamics. From targeting Russian ships in the Red Sea to Chinese-owned tanker attacks, Houthis are capitalizing on the chaos.
A supremacist agenda
The movement consistently uses the increasingly volatile situation with Israel to bolster their own agenda, experts said. Once the Houthis took the mantle as the defenders of Palestine, they were able to turn and face another power.
“[The Houthis] have mastered the art of extortion, especially with the Saudis,” Badawi said.
The Houthis have been able to crack down on civil disturbances in their controlled territory and achieve more international rights, including access to international banking and more flights from Sana’a. But they have not won over the people, the experts said.
Al-Dawasari explained that it’s important to understand the Houthis’ motivations.
“[The Houthis have] a supremacist agenda, they believe that they are superior to the Yemenis,” he said.
This belief has undone much of the good faith that the Houthis have built up in Yemen from their war against Israel.
“Just because [the people of Yemen] support what the Houthis are doing against Israel, does not necessarily mean they are supporting the Houthis [domestically],” Al-Dawasari said.
Nasser spoke about life under the Houthi regime. She described the situation in the north of Yemen, where people have limited government services and freedom. The Houthis, in her eyes, are using external threats to divert attention from their lack of experience in governing.
“Their reputational gains may become irrelevant, if they fail to deliver on their promises of stability and prosperity,” Nasser said.
No comment from Iraq
Badawi, an expert in Houthi movements within Iraq, described an uneasy truce. The Iraqis have many more armed groups supported by Iran than other Gulf states. Their transfer of ideas and expertise enables the Houthis to acquire Iraqi oil from these groups.
So far, the Iraqi government has not commented on this relationship.
“The Iraqi government wants to maintain a margin of maneuverability. They do not want to speak about it, unless they have too,” Badawi explained.
