Since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the Houthis, an armed opposition group has been an increasing threat to Yemen and globally, due to their hostility towards a dominant Sunni-religious Yemen. In support for the Hamas, the Houthis have been attacking Israeli ships that are assumed to be supplying Israel with supplies and resources. It has become evident that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Lebanon’s Hezbollah communities are helping Houthi attacks that are stationed in Yemen. The Houthis are severely disrupting global shipping done in the Red Sea, by targeting and attacking vessels that they think are Israeli even though they lack association with Israel. This could lead to more damage done in the war on Gaza as more nations become affected by affiliates of the Hamas militant group.

The involvement of the IRGC and Hezbollah groups has been noted by an Iranian insider according to Reuters. They claimed that “The Revolutionary Guards have been helping the Houthis with military training (on advanced weapons)”. Furthermore, also according to Reuters, Abdulghani Al-Iryani, senior researcher at the Sana’s Center for Strategic Studies said that “It is clearly the case that the Iranians are helping identify the target and the destination. There is no local Houthi capacity to do that”. This was in response to Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdulsalam denying any help given by Iran or the Hezbollah groups regarding the attacks in the Red Sea. These statements reflect how Abdulsalam’s denial should not be without its limitations and lack of credibility. Due to the history of Iranian support for the Houthis, the argument remains that we can rule in any belief that Iranian and Hezbollah communities are assisting Houthi attacks in Yemen with less doubt and more confidence.

This alliance that Iranian and Hezbollah communities are undertaking is detrimental and creates severe consequences to the trade route between Asia and Europe that the Houthis are committed to keep attacking in support for the Hamas. Without the help of allies, the Houthis would not be able to inflict the global damage that they are currently enacting. Because the US and UK are attempting to thwart the Houthi attacks, they are also endangering the lives of their soldiers which will only jeopardize more lives and assets. Bombings in Yemen done by the UK and US have been expected to not be effective in deterring future Houthi aggression and damage. Violence cannot combat violence and more countries declaring war on each other is only going to be more disastrous because of Iran’s and Hezbollah’s support for the Houthis. It should not be taken out of the question that Israel might declare war on more nations helping the Hamas as Israel refuses to back down from the war on Gaza.

According to the BBC, the history of the Houthis can be brought back to the 1990s when they first emerged against the Sunni majority in Yemen as Shia Muslim minorities known as the Zaidis. Their support for the Hamas goes back to the creation of the group, as the Iranian-led “axis of resistance” declared their detestation for Israel and the United States in the West as part of their emergence and motivation for their political goals. Because of their anti-Israel and West sentiment, it would not have been difficult for them to align with the Hamas in their quest for power along with their extreme objectives. Since then, they have fought to win independence from Yemen which include rebellions and uprisings with their main goal possibly to take over Yemen completely one day.

The Houthi attacks further implicate the war in Gaza because of increasing alliances for all actors involved. Violence will only get worse because of the Houthis’ increased capabilities by their allies and the UK and US’s strategies to fight fire with fire because they believe peace can no longer be negotiated. Global shipping will only be exacerbated if the attacks in the Red Sea do not stop.