The West

Since the start of Operation Iron Swords (October 7, 2023), the Houthi campaign in the Red Sea area has escalated and drawn in many participants, the most important of which are the United States, Britain and Iran, whose involvement has increased. Initially the Houthis launched missiles and UAVs at Israel, but their tactics gradually morphed into attacking ships sailing in the Red Sea and near the coast of Yemen which they identified as "having connections to Israel. As the war continued, and especially during December and January 2024, the campaign in the Red Sea area. The Houthis carry out direct attacks on Israel, such as launching missiles and UAVs continue, but their frequency has declined significantly, apparently due to the failure of the Houthis to penetrate the IDF and American Army aerial defenses and hit targets inside Israel. In ITIC assessment, the campaign in the Red Sea area can be expected to continue as long as the war in the Gaza Strip continues. Recently a kind of balance of actions and reactions has been created, and it will be difficult to halt it without intervention to convince the Houthis to withdraw their demand for an end to the fighting in the Gaza Strip as a condition for stopping their attacks. Without external intervention (especially directly from Iran, but possibly also from Russia and China indirectly through Iran), it is likely that the Houthis will continue their attacks since their actions give them legitimacy. They also provide them with a reputation as a significant regional force with leverage for its objectives in Yemen's internal struggle and against regional rivals such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Read more...