SANA’A — A few days ago, Yemenis woke up to explosions. The U.S. and UK militaries struck Houthi targets in the capital and other provinces, including Taiz, Al Hudaydah and Hajjah. The strikes targeted “radar systems, air defense systems, and sites for storing and launching drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles” in Houthi-held areas, the U.S. military said.
The strikes killed five of their fighters and injured six others, the Houthis said, pledging a response. They continued attacking vessels transiting in the crucial shopping route off Yemen.
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Another wave of U.S. and UK strikes on Monday struck an underground storage site and locations associated with Houthi missile and air surveillance capabilities, the U.S.-led coalition said.
Amid this escalation, war songs, known as “al-Zawamil,” have been widely played in rebel’ areas, especially in al-Sabeen Square, the largest in Sana’a, where the Houthis mobilized their supporters. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree posted a footage on X, formerly known as Twitter, of crowds chanting wartime slogans, calling it a “majestic scene.”
But fears have begun to mount among Yemenis over the impact of the escalation on their already deteriorating living conditions, which comes amid fuel shortages.
Ideological aspect
They are concerned that the tit for tat attacks between the Houthis and the U.S. could lead to the closure of the Al Hudaydah port, which is the Red Sea entry point for 70% of Yemen’s food, humanitarian aid and fuel supplies.
They’re using the war to regain popularity.
Maysaa Shuja al-Deen, a Yemeni researcher, said the U.S.-led strikes were not a surprise, given statements by the U.S and other countries rejecting the Houthis’ attempt to link their attacks on Red Sea shipping with the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The rebels, who have long received military support from Iran, used the destructive war to regain “popularity,” as they used to benefit from such military actions, Shuja al-Deen said, adding that the situation in Yemen depends on “how the Houthis will respond, and whether they respond in a way that would draw another military response.”
The Houthis present themselves not only a Yemeni faction, but also a regional group, which is an ideological aspect of the group’s undeclared manifesto, Shuja al-Deen said. She believes that Western policies toward the group and Yemen in general should be modified.
Paying a double price
Despite their country’s complicated situation on the economic, humanitarian and political levels, Yemenis are apparently divided over the Houthis’ escalation in the Red Sea. Concerns are growing among Yemenis about their future.
Mukhtar al-Rahbi, an adviser to Yemen’s information minister, called the strikes against the Houthis an “America-British aggression on Yemen” because of “its strong and courageous position” toward the war in Gaza, and the Palestinian cause in general. He said that targeting Israeli or Israel-linked ships came “within the framework of legitimate resistance” and was an attempt to “reduce pressure on the people of Gaza.”
But many Yemenis reject that position and believe their country is paying a double price. The Houthis’ control and practices have caused many domestic crises, and the U.S. and UK are attacking a country already exhausted by more than a decade of civil wars and chaos.
“It is still difficult to evaluate these strikes, but they could be limited in number and perhaps in impact,” said Mustafa Naji, a Yemeni political analyst, citing a lack of information and the secrecy surrounding the areas that have been hit. Naji said the strikes were meant as a warning message to the Houthis, but that the rebels do not care — “no matter how painful those strikes are for the Yemenis in general.”
“They will invest in [the strikes] to gain a seat among armed groups with a regional and international dimension,” he said.
