The Houthis are acting as if they control the region, but in reality, they are like a “wasp buzzing around its ruined nest” after the defeats suffered by Iran in most of the areas it once controlled. This is evident in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is now much weaker than it was in 2013, and in Iraq, where the government took the initiative to monopolize illegal weapons. Today, the Houthi group is besieged by these developments. This means the window of opportunity for terrorism that is open at Bab al-Mandab is beginning to close. Since 2011, Iran has been relying on the Houthi group, believing it is in control of the internal Yemeni situation.
However, the Gulf-led ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ undermined this project. The world’s recognition of the legitimacy of the government in Aden thwarted the attempt to make Yemen a thorn on the side of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, especially after the heroic resistance to Iranian attacks on the region. Today, the landscape is completely different from what it was in previous years. The threats issued by the outcasts in Yemen to close the Bab al-Mandab Strait and intimidate Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are just empty rhetoric. These threats cannot neutralize the political stance of the Gulf, which is keen on normalizing relations with neighboring countries, free from the control of terrorist groups.
Recent developments in the conflict between the United States of America and Israel on one side and Iran on the other side have rendered the Yemeni statements meaningless on the international stage. Moreover, Iran is currently suffering from weaknesses that are beginning to manifest as cracks within the regime. Iran needs to deal with its internal situation. As a result of such weakness, and to prevent further fragmentation, Iran is attempting to export its crisis by continuing to target Gulf states, including Qatar and Oman, despite their efforts to mediate between Tehran and Washington.
What is happening today in the region, including Lebanon and Yemen, entails that the idea of militias operating outside the state even under the banner of ‘resisting Israel’, is no longer viable. The global situation has become so sensitive that half-measures are unacceptable. As US President George W. Bush said in 2001, “You’re either with us or against us.” This is the principle adopted by the current US administration. Indeed, the Houthis were controlled in 2025 through the agreement with the United States signed in Muscat. Therefore, any intervention by the group in the current war means its end as a disruptive force, and it is fully aware of this.
The statements issued by the Houthi group from Sana’a not only violate the 2022 ceasefire agreement with Riyadh, but also legitimize the return of ‘Operation Decisive Storm’. The reality today is different from what it was in 2011, not only for Iran’s proxies in the region, the Houthis in particular, but also for Tehran itself. Thus, the continuous Iranian attacks on the Gulf Arab states and the threats from the Houthi group signal the beginning of the end for the terrorist nightmare that the region has endured for years.
