As the Israeli and American war against Iran enters its tenth day, attention has increasingly turned toward the Ansar Allah movement, known as the Houthis, in Yemen. The group is regarded as one of Tehran’s most prominent regional allies, and observers are closely watching its readiness to enter the conflict, particularly after Lebanon’s Hezbollah and several Iraqi factions joined the confrontation.
Despite the escalation in rhetoric from the Houthi leadership, especially statements delivered by the group’s leader Abdul Malik al Houthi, who declared in the early days of the war that they were prepared for any developments, the group has not yet formally announced its entry into the conflict.
Last Thursday, al Houthi stated that their hands were on the trigger and that they were ready to take military action at any moment should circumstances require it. Nevertheless, the movement has so far stopped short of officially joining the war.
Military Movements on the Ground
Alongside the statements from the group’s leader, Yemeni sources have reported extensive military movements, including the deployment of reinforcements to several provinces under Houthi control. These movements also included the activation and deployment of air defence platforms, as well as marches organised by supporters in major cities in solidarity with Iran.
Mobilisation efforts have been concentrated in the provinces of Sana’a and Ma’rib, alongside additional reinforcements sent toward al Jawf province near the Saudi border. Similar movements have also been observed toward the coastal province of al Hudaydah and the islands under its administration in the Red Sea.
At the same time, the provinces of Sana’a, al Hudaydah, Dhamar, Hajjah, and Saada, the stronghold of the Houthis, witnessed aircraft flying overhead whose identity remains unknown but is believed to be conducting reconnaissance operations, according to Yemeni media sources. These sources also indicated that the Houthis had evacuated several vital facilities.
Days before the war erupted, the emergency committee in areas under Houthi control approved several measures aimed at strengthening the emergency sector and raising preparedness levels to respond effectively to potential developments in the coming period.
In this context, Israeli media reported that Israel’s security establishment had recently detected activity involving launch platforms in Yemeni territory, believed to belong to the Houthi movement, according to the Hebrew Channel 14 website.
Israel’s army radio also quoted a military official stating that Israeli forces were closely monitoring the Houthis and that the group’s capabilities remain intact.
During the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which lasted two years, the Houthis carried out hundreds of attacks using missiles, drones, and naval vessels. Their operations targeted the occupied Palestinian territories as well as commercial and military ships which the group declared to be linked to Israel or the United States.
Strategic Calculations or Tactical Delay
The decision by the Houthis to engage in a comprehensive confrontation appears to be governed by complex and multi layered calculations. These include understandings with Washington and Riyadh, as well as the possibility of an Iranian strategy that believes the moment has not yet arrived for the group to enter the war.
From another perspective, some analysts believe that Houthi threats may represent a manoeuvre intended to distract opposing forces. According to this view, the group may be satisfied with observation for the time being, particularly after its capabilities were strained during two years of direct confrontation in the Gaza war against Israel and the United States.
Those confrontations resulted in the killing of hundreds of members, including prominent military and political leaders, and caused significant destruction to vital facilities in areas under Houthi control.
Nevertheless, the movement has renewed its explicit commitment to the principle of “unity of arenas”. This was reflected in a meeting held in Muscat on 10 February between the head of the Houthi negotiating delegation, Mohammed Abdul Salam, and the Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani.
According to the Houthi affiliated Al Masirah channel, both sides emphasised during the talks the concept of unity across the fronts of what they described as the axis of jihad and resistance.
In May 2025, Omani mediation succeeded in reaching an agreement to halt mutual attacks between Washington and the Houthis. Military operations between the group and Israel also ceased following the implementation of a ceasefire agreement on 10 October last year.
The Houthis have also stated that by the end of 2023 they reached a roadmap agreement with Saudi Arabia after negotiations mediated by Oman aimed at resolving the Yemeni crisis and ending the war that has been ongoing for 12 years between the group and government forces backed by the Saudi led coalition in Yemen. However, that roadmap has not yet been implemented due to delays in signing the agreement.
Waiting for the Right Moment
From Sana’a, which is under Houthi control, military expert Brigadier General Mujeeb Shamsan told Al Jazeera Net that “Sana’a is closely monitoring the movements of the American and Zionist enemy and their aggression against Iran, while keeping a careful eye on developments across the region”.
He added that the Houthis remain fully prepared and that their entry into the conflict may not take long according to current indicators. He described the ongoing battle as a threat to all components of what is known as the resistance axis, which in his view necessitates full engagement.
“At the moment determined by the leadership, Sana’a will enter this battle and will surprise the enemy with advanced capabilities,” he said, referring to the group’s missile forces, drone units, naval capabilities, and air defence systems.
Lower Readiness
Strategic affairs expert Dr Ali al Dhahab believes that the Houthis’ current readiness for confrontation is lower than it was during the Gaza war, noting that exaggerating their readiness carries clear political dimensions.
In statements to Al Jazeera Net, he attributed this to the severe and continuous strikes the group suffered over the past year, which depleted much of its manpower and military resources. He also pointed to restrictions on access to resources and disruptions to supply chains used to build their military capabilities.
Al Dhahab noted that if the Houthis are forced to participate, they will mobilise whatever capabilities they possess. However, he explained that the reasons behind their current hesitation relate to the temporal and geographical scope of the war, as its timeline remains limited and the theatre of confrontation is still largely confined to Iran, the Gulf states, and Israel.
According to al Dhahab, despite the escalation of exchanges between the parties involved, the conflict has not yet reached the level of violence that would necessitate Houthi intervention. He also suggested that Iran may not have given the signal for them to act.
He believes that if attacks were launched, they would likely focus on ships in the Red Sea and the Bab al Mandab strait, as well as targets connected to Israel.
Regarding the possibility of Houthi attacks against regional states, particularly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, al Dhahab said such a scenario remains possible, especially if Riyadh and Abu Dhabi enter the conflict in a direct offensive manner.
In such a case, the Houthis could seek to create a strategic impact in support of Iran, which would also serve as a form of pre emptive defence aimed at preserving their own authority.
Potential Turning Point
Journalist Adnan al Jabrani, who specialises in military affairs and Houthi movements, believes that the Houthis are ready to intervene at any moment and have prepared even at the level of target banks and internal arrangements.
He told Al Jazeera Net that their delay in entering the conflict is due to the axis assessing whether the war will be prolonged or whether additional countries will join the confrontation with Iran. In such a scenario, the Houthis would become the new card introduced into the battle.
He argues that Houthi intervention is tied to the occurrence of a major turning point or significant transformation in the war.
Meanwhile, political science professor Ismail al Suhaili explained the Houthis’ hesitation to engage directly in the conflict as the result of several strategic and security calculations.
According to al Suhaili, two currents within the Houthi movement influence the decision making process.
The first is an ideological current that has forged strong ideological ties with Iran and is pushing forcefully toward full participation in the fighting, viewing the current battle as existential and decisive for the future of both the axis and the movement.
The second is a pragmatic current that previously managed regional and international understandings and fears that escalation could undermine the agreement reached with the United States through Omani mediation.
Al Suhaili, a senior researcher at the Mokha Centre for Strategic Studies, stated that analysing the movement’s behaviour and the rhetoric of its leader suggests concern that direct military involvement could provoke decisive American and Israeli strikes targeting the group’s leadership and military structure.
He noted that the group is still recovering from previous strikes that killed senior officials and its military commander Mohammed al Ghamari.
Al Suhaili believes that the Houthis are also concerned about the possibility of direct targeting of their leader, while seeking to prevent Yemen’s internationally recognised government from exploiting the regional situation to open new internal battlefronts that could lead to the liberation of strategic areas from Houthi control, particularly Yemen’s Red Sea coastal positions which serve as logistical supply routes for the group.
He added that, for now, the Houthis appear to prioritise political survival and maintaining their de facto authority, while demonstrating political and media solidarity with Tehran and simultaneously raising their combat readiness.
He expects that the Houthis may escalate gradually through operations in the Red Sea if the Iranian government manages to remain cohesive and prolong the war, or if the conflict expands and the regional balance shifts.
