Yemen’s Houthis are expected to stop their attacks on Israel and Red Sea shipping if Israel upholds its end of the Gaza ceasefire deal it has reached with Hamas.
The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, began their attacks in 2023 in response to the US-backed Israeli onslaught in Gaza. The US began a bombing campaign against the Yemeni group in January 2024, but it has only escalated the situation.
President Biden’s special envoy to Yemen, Tim Lenderking, has previously acknowledged that the Houthis would likely stop their attacks if there were a ceasefire in Gaza.
On Thursday, Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said Ansar Allah would monitor the ceasefire, which is expected to take effect on Sunday, and warned there would be more attacks if Israel didn’t follow the deal.
“We will continue to monitor developments in Palestine during the three days prior to the entry into force of the Gaza agreement. If the Israeli massacres continue, we will continue our operations,” al-Houthi said.
“At any stage in which the aggression retreats from the agreement, we will be ready to provide military support to our Palestinian brothers,” al-Houthi added.
Al-Houthis comments signaled that Yemeni attacks on Israel could continue until the ceasefire is implemented since Israel has continued to bomb Gaza. In recent weeks, the Houthis have stepped up missile attacks on Israel, with some making it past air defenses. Israel has responded with heavy airstrikes on Yemen, which have only hit civilian targets.
Al-Houthi vowed Yemen would not back in the face of further attacks. He said Ansar Allah will “confront any aggression, whether by the Israelis, the Americans, or their allies, or any attempts to divert our country from its liberated jihadist path.”
