A new report has revealed that the military strength of Yemen’s Houthi group, which has been continuously attacking Saudi Arabia, has increased many times over in the past 10 years.
In Yemen, government-backed forces control most areas, while the Houthi group controls key areas including the capital, Sana’a. Saudi Arabia supports the government-backed forces, while Iran supports the Houthi group. Earlier, in an effort to prevent the Houthis from growing stronger in Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, Britain, and Israel carried out airstrikes against them. However, the Houthis have continued to capture more areas and advance.
The Houthi group, which uses the mountainous regions in Yemen as its main base, has been attacking oil refineries and airports in Saudi Arabia from there using missiles and drones. The UN and other experts say that Iran, along with its ally Lebanon and Iran-backed groups in Iraq, provides them with training and weapons. Reports also say that the Houthis are secretly trying to buy ballistic missiles from China that can strike targets up to 2,000 km away.
The Houthi group already has various types of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones. Most of these are made in Iran. Using these, the Houthis have been carrying out attacks on Saudi Arabia. With these missiles and drones, the Houthis also occasionally attack Gulf countries and Israel. They also occasionally attack ships passing through the Red Sea.
The UN has imposed a ban on selling weapons to the Houthi group. As a result, Iran and China have been stating that they have not supplied weapons to the Houthi group. However, in inspections conducted by international countries on ships heading toward Yemen, Iranian-made weapons and parts are occasionally seized.
In 2015, the Houthi movement had 30,000 people in its ground forces. By 2024, this number is said to have increased to 350,000. Although they buy weapons from countries including Iran, Lebanon, and China, it is also said that the Houthis are producing weapons in large numbers domestically. In this way, over the past 10 years, the Houthis have multiplied their strength many times over.
Saudi Arabia in a bind: Saudi Arabia, which has a military alliance with Pakistan and Turkey, has not been able to give an effective response to attacks by the Houthi group. Despite having weapons and fighter jets purchased from the United States, Saudi Arabia has not been able to deliver a proper counterattack against the Houthi group.
Saudi Arabia has already carried out airstrikes against the Houthi group several times. Those efforts have not yielded sufficient results. As a result, it is said that Saudi Arabia is struggling, unsure of how to control the Houthi group.
3 killed in Saudi attack in Yemen: The Houthi group said on Saturday that 3 children were killed in an airstrike carried out by Saudi Arabia in an area under their control in Yemen.
They said that Saudi Arabia bombed houses in the village of Al-Ar in Dhamar province using warplanes, killing 3 children and injuring many others. The Houthi administration said that a total of 124 people have been killed so far in Saudi attacks.