The Iranian-backed Houthis carried out two attacks on Israel on Saturday on the eve of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. This is an important symbol of how the Islamist Yemen-based terrorist movement intends to show that they have not been deterred by Israel’s strikes and are prepared to continue attacking Israel if the ceasefire falls apart.
The Houthis have been attacking Israel since October 2023, when they chose to support Hamas’s war on Israel. Over time, their attacks shifted from targeting Eilat to targeting ships, then to targeting central Israel.
Their narrative has also shifted. They initially portrayed the battle as one of joint operations with various Iranian-backed groups, such as Hezbollah and militias in Iraq. Later in the war, they shifted the narrative to claim they were backing Gazans and picking up the slack as Hamas no longer had much of a rocket arsenal.
On January 18, the Houthis announced that they had “carried out a qualitative military operation targeting the so-called Israeli Defense Ministry in the occupied Jaffa area, using a ballistic missile.” The group added that “the missile reached its target accurately and the interception systems failed to intercept it.”
The terrorist group reiterated that it “will stand by the Palestinian resistance in Gaza and in coordination with it, in order to deal appropriately militarily with any violations or any military escalation committed by the Israeli enemy during the period of implementing the ceasefire agreement.”
Initiating conflict
The statement was interesting because the Houthis were the ones attacking on the eve of the ceasefire; they were not responding but initiating aggression.
Their goal is to show that they are a kind of guarantor of the ceasefire. This is a major play for them, trying to expand their influence thousands of kilometers from Yemen. They have already harmed shipping in the region, and the missile attacks illustrate their increased power.
The important aspect of the Houthi attack is how they have carved out this new role. It means that in any subsequent round of conflict, Israel will likely have to contend with more attacks from them.
Israel’s six rounds of airstrikes on the Houthis over the past year have not deterred them or appeared to reduce their ballistic missile capabilities. This has lessons for the region as well, as Gulf countries also fear the Houthis and their threats.