From a revolutionary movement confined to their mountainous stronghold in northern Yemen two decades ago, the Houthis, against a backdrop of support for Palestinians in Gaza, have become the spearhead of resistance to Israel and the United States with their repeated attacks that threaten maritime traffic in the Red Sea. "But don't forget," said a Yemeni intellectual in Sana'a, reached by phone, "that their movement has existed since well before 2004, relying on an ancient dynasty, the Zaydis, which is seeking to regain power after losing it in 1962 during a revolution."
Beginning in 2011, the insurgents took advantage of the chaos in which the "Arab Spring" plunged Yemen to strengthen themselves and conquer Sana'a, the capital, in 2014, and then half of the territory in the north and northwest of the country. These advances have been made possible thanks to the rallying of many soldiers from the former regime of dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh, and the logistical support of Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah, at a time when...
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