Abdul Malik al-Houthi has scored his biggest military victory in years, after the Iran-aligned Houthi militant group swept through Yemen’s Red Sea coastline and tightened its grip on a vital shipping waterway.
The offensive has been accompanied by attacks on Saudi Arabia. It has put the Houthis in a strong position to call the shots in the Bab el-Mandeb strait, with the potential to halt global trade in one of the world’s most important conduits for goods and commodities, including oil.
Al-Houthi has transformed his men from a tribal insurgency into a force of tens of thousands. They withstood years of air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen’s civil war. They also built an arsenal including drones and ballistic missiles.
A 2022 UN-brokered truce halted heavy fighting in the war. It did not produce a lasting settlement in Yemen.
Why it matters: a narrow waterway now sits at the center of a broader security shock. When armed groups can threaten shipping, the cost falls on trade, energy flows and everyone who depends on them.
The big picture: this is what happens when state authority gives way to militias. Markets need open lanes, not commanders deciding who moves and who waits.