Yemen's Houthi rebels have remained neutral in the escalating Iran-backed conflict in the Middle East, citing internal stability concerns and strategic calculations.

Yemeni militant group is noticeably absent from Iran’s war with the US and Israel

Military accuses Houthi group of carry out attack on gathering during iftar in Hajjah province - Anadolu Ajansı

It was expected by many in the IDF that the Houthis would join in the attack once Iran's former supreme leader Ali Khamenei was assassinated. IDF sources on Thursday expressed surprise that Yemen's

This article examines the role of Yemen's Houthi rebels amidst escalating conflict in the Middle East. Unlike their Iranian-backed allies in Lebanon and Iraq, the Houthis have not officially joined the war.

If Yemen‑based Houthis, a militant group long supported, armed and nurtured by Tehran, were to enter the war, they could block another vital shipping route, the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait, compounding the threat to global trade already posed by the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz.

The thunderous roar of US fighter jets pierced the pre-dawn darkness over Yemen’s Red Sea coast on April 18, 2025, as precision-guided munitions found their target: the Ras Isa oil terminal. What happened next would send shockwaves through the region and escalate tensions to unprecedented levels.