What is happening in Yemen? | | Houthis

In recent weeks, there has been renewed conflict in Yemen. The attacks by the Houthi group – which has been in control of Sanaa and many areas in northern Yemen since 2014 – have been linked to the conflict caused by the arrival of an Iranian plane at Sanaa’s airport and increased concerns about navigation in the Red Sea.

This comes in the wake of a stalled peace process and the failure to reach an agreement on de-escalation measures.

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In this season, the movement on the front lines is seen as an attempt by the Houthis to pressure and test the limits of the response of the world-renowned government, its friend, Saudi Arabia, and the rest of the world.

At the moment, this development does not mean the idea of ​​starting a major war, but it shows that the agreement announced in 2022 will no longer contain conflicts.

From Hays to Al-Jawf: Minor conflicts and ethnic mobilization

The district of Hays in the Hodeidah district near the port of Hodeidah on the Red Sea has been one of the main targets in recent weeks.

On July 5, the Houthis rebelled attack government positions using mortar shells, drones and sniper fire. According to medical and military sources cited by Al Jazeera, 16 government soldiers were killed in the attack and 22 others were wounded. The Houthis have not announced their deaths or given details of how the clashes began.

Hays is particularly important because it has remained quiet since the treaty period, and because of its location near the coast and shipping lanes.

The conflict is not limited to Hodeidah. Marib, Taiz and al-Dhale have also seen different military forces.

In al-Jawf, the picture is different. The tribal unrest was sparked by a dispute over housing in Sanaa and later turned into a test of the Houthis’ influence and relations with the tribes. Sheikh Hamad bin Rashid bin Fadgham al-Hazmi intervened in the conflict, according to tribal tradition, but was arrested by the Houthis.

This turned discontent into an anti-Houthi movement, which is accompanied by calls for “nakaf”, a traditional call to mobilize people and support, along with “al-Rayyan sit-ins”, periodic tribal meetings to gather supporters.

This development shows how the events in the battlefield are causing ethnic and social conflicts.

Al-Jawf is close to Marib and in a military and ethnically sensitive area, and any unrest could re-open the Houthis’ military base and disrupt their calculations in one of Yemen’s most important areas in northeastern Yemen.

Conflict has also reached the Red Sea. On July 5, the British military said that a cargo ship had been attacked off the coast of Hodeidah, causing no casualties. No one has claimed responsibility, but the incident occurred near an area controlled by the Houthis and at a time when the group has increased its attacks on maritime traffic.

The attack highlights the dangers faced by ships passing near Hodeidah and Bab al-Mandab, one of the world’s most vulnerable.

Sanaa airport conflict and prisoner exchange deal

The conflict between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Houthis has not only taken place on the battlefield. On July 3, an Iranian plane arrived at Sanaa airport to pick up a Houthi delegation to attend the funeral of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

A week later, the world-renowned government announced that Iran had submitted a request to fly a Mahan Air flight from Tehran to Sanaa to return the Houthi delegation. It rejected the request and decided to return the passengers to the plane they had rented from Yemenia Airways.

In response, some Houthi leaders insisted on continuing Mahan Air flights to Sanaa, presenting them as part of their right to operate the airport and open direct links with foreign countries. Therefore, the conflict went beyond one trip to the issue of control of the airport in the world and the flight outside of the government agencies, and the fight for independence and the recognition of the Houthi regime at the entrance.

Saudi Arabia is also involved in the conflict. The operation of a direct route between Sanaa and Tehran may affect the security and political situation that accompanied the reopening of the airport in peacetime. Riyadh sees the growth of airport traffic outside the agreement as something that strengthens the Houthis’ relationship with Iran near the kingdom’s southern border. Therefore, his responsibility is related to keeping the flights within the declared schedule while continuing to operate the national airline.

Another issue that has grown in the past few days is the issue of prisoner-to-prisoner exchange that has been discussed for a long time, which has failed.

On July 10, Hadi Haig, the head of the group negotiating with the government on the file of prisoners and hostages, announced that the group had received information from the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations representative office that the Houthis refused to use the agreement on the date they planned and suspended it indefinitely.

In response, the head of the Houthis Prisoners Committee, Abdulqader al-Murtada, criticized the government for the delay, blaming the failure to follow the terms of the agreement and the refusal to add names to the agreed list.

The operation involves more than 1,600 prisoners and requires field and airlift arrangements under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Regardless of the position of each side, the delay puts the negotiation process ahead of the new test and confirms the continuation of the use of human files as political and military tools.

Regional tensions are the limits of conflict

What is happening in Yemen has a direct impact. The US-Israel war on Iran and the conflict between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia have reduced the ability of Yemeni parties to control the rise and increase the influence of foreign calculations during the conflict.

This has given the Houthis greater political and military leverage, while the government has struggled to assert its presence.

Saudi Arabia wants to contain the Houthi threat while keeping the gains low. The Houthis, for their part, are betting on a combination of war and pressure on airports, prisoners, and travel files to gain more information about their regime and their direct relationship with Iran.

These developments show the weakness of the detente and the escalation of political and military forces.

Less conflict and more pressure, each side uses the power it has to force it. So far, there is no indication that they will decide to engage in a major conflict, but repeated attacks and difficult negotiations could end the stability that has been in place since 2022.

The threat of conflict will remain as long as the causes of war are not resolved, and as long as the parties use weapons to destroy their vision and control their political resources.