How the Houthis Could Put the World in Double Dire Straits

Excerpt

The Yemeni warfront, perpetually threatening and occasionally lethal for Israel, was relatively quiet during the recent war between the United States, Israel, and Iran. But while the Houthis, the Islamic Republic’s partner in Yemen, weren’t firing many drones and missiles, they were watching closely.

After weathering numerous waves of American and Israeli airstrikes since 2024 — including incurring significant damage to critical infrastructure — and facing growing economic troubles in Yemen, the Houthis are looking for funds. Here, the cash-strapped, Iran-backed terror group takes away two big lessons from its patron’s experience in the war: that demanding a toll from ships passing through the narrow strait separating the Indian Ocean from the Red Sea (the Bab al-Mandeb) may be lucrative, and that Saudi Arabia is vulnerable.

Bridget Toomey is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).