The Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah, is an Islamist rebel movement fighting in the Yemen Civil War.
They are primarily made up of Shia Muslims and their name comes from their leadership being primarily from the Houthi tribe.
The group is thought to have its roots to Yemeni youth movements but were believed to have become radicalized and eventually emerged in the early 2000s as an opposition movement against then-Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Its leader at the time, Hussein al-Houthi, was killed by Yemeni troops in 2004. Abdul-Malik al-Houthi currently leads the organization.
The Houthis aided in the overthrow of Saleh in the 2011 Yemeni Revolution, and in 2014, they managed to seize control of the capital city of Saana, sparking the still-ongoing Yemeni civil war.
Widely believed to be an Iran-backed proxy group, the Houthis are also known for their antisemitic views. Their slogan is "God is the Greatest. Death to America. Death to Israel. A Curse Upon the Jews. Victory to Islam."
Following the October 7 massacre in 2023, the Houthis began launching numerous ballistic missile and drone strikes against Israel, as well as attacking ships in the Red Sea. This has launched numerous tit-for-tat strikes between Ansar Allah and the Jewish state.
Around 50% of ballistic missiles that were fired by the Houthi terror group in Yemen since the resuming of fighting in Gaza have failed, according to Israeli officials.
The Houthis are a fundamentalist Shia group. The ex-president, Saleh, although a Sunni Muslim, decided to collaborate with them in a bid to return to power.
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"We might be at the stage of counting down the end of the Houthis," a leading expert said as the Yemeni government prepares a massive 80,000 soldier assault on Hodeidah.
A weekly selection of opinions and analyses from the Arab media around the world.
Houthi leader addressed recent developments in the Middle East in a statement and claimed there is a broader Israeli strategic plan targeting Iraq.
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The US State Department officially designated the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) on March 5.
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