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Yemeni forces are planning a ground offensive against the Houthis (Ansar Allah) in an attempt to take advantage of the ongoing U.S. operation against the Iran-backed group, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on April 14.
U.S. and Yemen officials told the newspaper that the forces are sensing an opportunity to oust the Houthis from some parts of the Red Sea coast, adding that United Arab Emirates (UAE), which supports these forces, raised the plan with American officials in recent weeks,
Private American security contractors provided advice to the Yemeni forces on a potential ground offensive, the newspaper quoted people involved in the planning as saying.
The U.S. is open to supporting such an offensive, the U.S. officials said, while noting that a decision on whether to back the effort hasn’t been made yet.
The officials added that the U.S. was not leading the talks for a ground offensive, and that the discussion involves empowering the local forces allied with the internationally recognized government in Yemen to take charge of the country’s security.
The U.S. military resumed strikes against Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen on March 15 on orders from President Donald Trump, who said that the large-scale operation was launched in response to the group’s renewed attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.
So far, the operation has claimed the lives of 123 people and left some 247 others wounded. However, the Houthis continue to launch attacks against Israel and the Red Sea remains for the most part closed for commercial shipping.
Yemeni officials told WSJ that the plan in discussion would see Yemeni forces launching an attack from the south of the country to capture the Red Sea port city of al-Hodeidah from the Houthis.
In 2017, Yemeni forces d launched a similar offensive to capture al-Hodeidah with direct support from the UAE and Saudi Arabia. After initial success, the forces met fierce resistance from the Houthis and were forced to withdraw and accept a ceasefire agreement.
According to WSJ, officials from Saudi Arabia had privately told American and Yemeni officials they won’t join or help a ground offensive in Yemen again, fearing that the Houthis could launch a new wave of missile and drone attacks against the kingdom.
The Houthis are apparently aware of the planned offensive. Last week, A senior official of the group warned of such a move.
“The enemy’s options in Yemen have failed. Neither bombing nor American aggression will stop supporting Gaza,” wrote Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Yemeni Supreme Political Council, in a post on the X social network.
Al-Houthi went on to stress that “no ground military operation will succeed. It will face hell and the power of the righteous.”
He also pointed out that it would be mistaken to test the already tested Yemenis, referring to the failure of the Saudi-led Arab coalition’s operation against the Houthis.
“America must know that its continued aggression is a continuation of the erosion of deterrence and exhaustion, and it will lose any future battle,” he added.
The U.S., which recently dispatched a second aircraft carrier to support the operation against the Houthis, appears to be committed to the fight against the group. However, it is still unclear how much the administration of President Donlad Trump is willing to get involved in a risky ground offensive.
Any such offensive, backed by the U.S. or not, will likely reignite the war in Yemen which largely came to a halt following a ceasefire brokered in 2022. Even if Saudi Arabia refrained from taking part in the planned offensive, the kingdom could find itself dragged back to the war.
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