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BackAbdul Malik al-Houthi and the Houthi militant group's strategic expansion in Yemen
Abdul Malik al-Houthi and the Houthi militant group's strategic expansion in Yemen
Developing
SCMP Economy59 minutes agoWorld1 min readChina

Abdul Malik al-Houthi and the Houthi militant group's strategic expansion in Yemen

yemenhouthired sea

Quick Look

  • Abdul Malik al-Houthi's Iran-aligned Houthi group has expanded control along Yemen's Red Sea coast, threatening the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
  • This military advancement challenges Saudi Arabia and poses risks to global shipping and oil trade routes.

AI-generated summary

Why It Matters

The 2022 UN-brokered truce halted heavy fighting but failed to reach a lasting settlement in Yemen's civil war. The Houthi movement has evolved from mountain fighters into a force equipped with drones and ballistic missiles.

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Abdul Malik al-Houthi, an elusive figure who commands a battle-hardened force, scored his biggest military victory in years when his Iran-aligned Houthi militant group swept through Yemen’s Red Sea coastline and tightened their grip on a vital shipping waterway, rattling oil superpower Saudi Arabia.

The offensive, which has been accompanied by attacks on Saudi Arabia, has put the Houthis in a strong position to call the shots in the Bab el-Mandeb strait by potentially halting global trade in one of the world’s most important conduits for goods and commodities, including oil.

Al-Houthi has transformed his men, fierce mountain fighters often in sandals and hooked on the green leaf stimulant khat, into a force of tens of thousands who withstood years of air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen’s civil war and built an arsenal including drones and ballistic missiles.

A 2022 UN-brokered truce halted heavy fighting in the war but failed to lead to a lasting settlement in the impoverished country.

Open Questions

  • Will the Houthi group actively block commercial shipping?
  • How will the Saudi-led coalition respond to the new territorial control?

Related Topics

yemen
PeopleAbdul Malik al-Houthi
OrganizationsHouthiSaudi-led coalitionUnited Nations
PlacesYemenRed SeaBab el-MandebSaudi Arabia
Topicshouthired seabab el-mandebsaudi arabiaabdul malik al-houthi
This article was originally published by SCMP Economy.

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