Yemen's Houthis Prepared to Strike Israel's Arab Allies

The Ansar Allah (Houthi) group is preparing to launch attacks on what it calls Israel's allies, particularly the United Arab Emirates, as the group has deployed ballistic missiles in Al-Jawf province, specifically in areas called Al-Maraziq, Ham, Al-Saqiya, and Al-Ajashir, local sources told Sheba Intelligence on Thursday.

These military movements are part of what it calls the Yemeni support for the Palestinians in Gaza, which has been bombed and besieged since October this year.

Last week, the Houthi movement chief said Yemen's Armed Forces would not hesitate to hit the U.S. military warships in the Red Sea if Washington and its allies carry out military strikes against Yemen.

Meanwhile, the Houthi forces, according to field sources, are preparing for attacking the Fifth Military Region in the Haradh and Midi areas, which Yemen's UN-recognized government controls.

Lately, the group mobilized thousands of fighters who are willing to join a fight against Israel. But they can be deployed to the frontlines in Yemen.

As the Houthi attacks on ships are continuing, diplomatic efforts have intensified to persuade the Houthis to cease their assaults on shipping lanes in the Red Sea.

An official in the group in Sanaa said that the group's office in Muscat received many messagesfrom European Union countries seeking assurance for the passage of ships in the Red Sea. The Houthi official said the group also received similar messages from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

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Spain and Germany contacted the Houthi office regarding their ships crossing the Red Sea to the ports of the two countries, and the Houthis pledged to stop attacks against the commercial ships of the two countries if they left the U.S. announced international naval coalition, according to the source.

The source pointed out that the United States also repeatedly requested the Sultanate of Oman to put pressure on the Houthis to stop attacks on commercial ships, and the Sultan's office conveyed the American message to the Houthi group.

Sultan Al-Numani, the Minister of the Royal Office in the Sultanate of Oman, is responsible for Houthi affairs in Oman, and intelligence officials from other countries usually meet with Al-Numani to deliver messages to the Houthi group.

On Tuesday, the U.S. military intercepted a barrage of drones and missiles allegedly launched by Houthi rebels in the southern Red Sea over a 10-hour period.

U.S. Central Command (Centcom) posted on X  that U.S. forces shot down a total of 12 drones, three anti-ship ballistic missiles, and two land attack cruise missiles fired by Houthis toward ships in the southern Red Sea.

 Houthi forces spokesman Yahya Saree wrote on X that the attack came after the Houthi authorities had issued repeated warning messages to the crew of MSC United that were ignored by the merchant ship's crew.

The Houthi group says its attacks on Israeli-linked ships will not stop as long as the Israeli war on Gaza continues. So far, multiple shipping companies have suspended their vessels from sailing in the Red Sea.