In Saada, northern Yemen, a major assembly of tribal fighters and leaders pledged their readiness to support the Iranian-backed Houthi movement in any confrontation against Israel and the United States. This rare and large-scale gathering saw hundreds of armed men, arriving in convoys of four-wheel-drive vehicles, come together to sign formal declarations of loyalty—underscore the increasing enlistment of local Yemenis into Iran’s proxy network and illustrating rising regional tensions as Israel faces multi-front threats.
The meeting, unprecedented even by Yemen’s standards of tribal mobilization, involved members of the Jam’ah tribal confederation publicly affirming their willingness to follow Houthi leadership directives. The Houthis, entrenched in Yemen since their takeover of Sana’a in 2014, remain a key actor in the so-called Iranian “Axis of Resistance,” joining other groups such as Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon in acts of hostility against Israel and its allies.
The announcement comes amid intensified conflict following the October 7, 2023 Hamas massacre in southern Israel, where Hamas terrorists killed over 1,200 Israelis and abducted more than 250, marking the deadliest antisemitic assault since the Holocaust. Israeli operations in Gaza, and increased friction across Lebanon, Syria, and the Red Sea, have been met with expanding Iranian-backed activity throughout the region. The Houthi leadership has explicitly aligned itself with this anti-Israel coalition, and, since late 2023, has escalated its use of ballistic missiles, drones, and naval attacks, targeting Israeli cities such as Eilat and threatening vital international shipping lanes.
Yemen’s fractured governance means tribal dynamics are pivotal. While past regimes sought a balance between tribal independence and central authority, the Houthis have harnessed a combination of ideology, material incentives, and Iranian support to bring more tribes into their military apparatus. During the event, sheikhs cited religious and ideological duty against supposed Western aggression, echoing Iranian talking points and the broader Axis of Resistance narrative promoted by Tehran.
The distance from Yemen to Israel—over 2,000 kilometers—remains largely symbolic. In modern warfare, geography offers little protection against drone and missile attacks, capabilities the Houthis have demonstrated repeatedly. Israeli security authorities, led by IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have identified the Houthi threat as an inseparable part of Iran’s campaign to encircle and destabilize the Jewish state and its allies.
American and Israeli officials stress that the ongoing mobilization in Yemen is not an isolated threat. The United States, under President Donald Trump, has authorized defensive measures to secure Red Sea shipping and deter further escalation. These initiatives, however, contend with a complex environment: the Houthis, empowered by new fighters and tribal backing, are able to target Western interests and raise the costs of international engagement in the region.
The Yemeni war’s domestic toll remains catastrophic, but the externalization of the conflict—via missile launches at Israel and naval strikes—demonstrates Tehran’s success in leveraging local actors to advance strategic goals. The danger is compounded by the tribalization of Yemeni society, whereby ancient loyalties now fuse with modern ideological agendas.
The Saada assembly’s timing, content, and spectacle appear calculated to send a message across the region: Yemen’s Houthis and their tribal allies are prepared to escalate direct action against both Israel and the United States, regardless of distance. For Israel, this event validates intelligence regarding the multi-front nature of the current war. For Western allies, it highlights the deepening risks posed by an unchecked Iranian proxy network.
As Israel wages its campaign to dismantle terror infrastructures in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, the developments in Yemen signal an enduring challenge. This is not just a local conflict, but a theater in the broader war imposed by Iran and its affiliates. The international community’s response—and Israel’s continued resolve—will be crucial in meeting this mounting challenge, defending not only Israel’s citizens, but also upholding international order against an expanding web of aggression.
