The Houthis are preparing for new attacks by theUS Army. According to what was reported by the Lebanese newspaper Al AkhbarHezbollah affiliate, Yemeni rebels are monitoring “US preparations for a major air campaign against Yemen, which will also include a land attack”. According to sources from the militia aligned with Iran, the operations on the ground will be conducted by “factions loyal to the United Arab Emirates, on multiple fronts”.
The same informants also stated that “recently Israel conducted a military exercise involving Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries at Al Dhafra air base in the Emirates”. The reference is to the exercise “Desert Flag 9”, which also saw the participation of Turkey, Oman, Kuwait, France, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Germany. No source reports the presence of IDF units, which suggests that these declarations are aimed at discredit the Arab leadership in the eyes of the population accusing it of collaboration with the Jewish State.
As regards the possibility of ground operations in Yemen, there are several doubts regarding what was stated by the newspaper aligned with Lebanese terrorists. First of all, the United Arab Emirates withdrew from the Saudi-led anti-Houthi coalition already in 2019. It is therefore unlikely that they will want to get involved in a conflict in the country again.
Furthermore, a new law has been in force since 2022 cease-fire Between the parts. This does not completely exclude the possibility that the United States will pressure its Gulf partners to attack the rebels again, considering that the Houthis’ hostile actions in the Red Sea also harm the interests of local actors. However, it must be considered that the pro-Iran militiamen have set themselves up as supporters of the Palestinian cause, deeply felt in the Arab world, and have gained popularity thanks to their attacks against civilian ships linked to Tel Aviv and Washington. Military operations against them could have internal repercussions for the states involved.
A resumption of US bombing is the most likely development. American forces have been engaged in the region since last November, when the Houthis began their raids against merchant ships linked to the Jewish state and its allies to show their support for Gaza. Monday 29 April, on Centcom (US Central Command) reported that the Washington military shot down five drones of the rebels who “they represented an imminent threat to the US, the coalition and merchant shipping in the region”. On the same day, a vessel flying the Maltese flag departing from Djibouti and bound for Saudi Arabia ended up the target of a missile attack.
There were no reports of damage or injuries.
