SRINAGAR: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have warned countries against joining Saudi Arabia in the renewed civil war, while saying they have assured the United States that American vessels in the Red Sea will not be targeted.
Mohamed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi political bureau, told The Associated Press on Sunday that Washington had reached out to the rebels following their rapid advance along Yemen’s western coast towards the Bab el-Mandeb Strait earlier this month.
“We confirmed that we are not targeting the United States, or any other nation in the strait, with the sole exception of the Saudi enemy,” al-Bukhaiti said in a Zoom interview from Sanaa, the rebel-held capital.
His comments came after US President Donald Trump said last weekend that his administration had held discussions with the Houthis. Trump said the rebels had called Washington and indicated they did not want the US involved in the conflict.
The AP subsequently reported that Oman had hosted a meeting between US and Houthi representatives. Al-Bukhaiti, however, confirmed only indirect contacts with US officials through Oman, which has previously mediated between the two sides.
Oman brokered a ceasefire between the Houthis and the Trump administration in 2025 following a week-long US bombing campaign. Under the agreement, the Houthis stopped attacks on US vessels in the Red Sea.
Al-Bukhaiti said the Houthis’ objective was not to shut the Bab el-Mandeb Strait but to ensure freedom of navigation through the strategic waterway.
Houthis Threaten Wider War
Al-Bukhaiti said the Houthis were capable of fighting on multiple fronts if other countries joined Saudi Arabia in military operations against them.
“Today, Yemen is capable of waging battle — not merely an internal conflict, but an international one as well,” he said.
He said Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia would continue until Riyadh lifts what the rebels describe as a decade-long blockade on areas under their control and allows vessels to reach Houthi-held Red Sea ports.
According to al-Bukhaiti, the latest escalation began after an airstrike blamed on the Saudi-led coalition hit Sanaa international airport and prevented an Iranian flight carrying a Houthi delegation from landing.
The Houthis responded with missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, including an attack targeting Riyadh on Saturday that was intercepted. Saudi officials said debris from a Houthi drone killed one civilian and injured others.
The Houthis have also declared a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and Red Sea and have attacked Saudi-linked vessels and oil facilities inside the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have struggled for years to contain the Houthis, who may now seek a diplomatic solution to stop the attacks. Any broader settlement could also involve Iran, which has been accused of supporting the rebels.
The United States, which carried out strikes against the Houthis under both the Biden and Trump administrations, has so far shown no indication of joining the latest fighting militarily.
Houthis Claim Shift In Balance Of Power
The Houthis’ recent advance has brought the strategic port city of Mokha and key Red Sea islands under their control, giving the rebels greater ability to monitor shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Around 12 per cent of global trade normally passes through the strategic waterway.
Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces, which have long been divided among rival factions, withdrew from some positions but have vowed to regroup.
The latest escalation has effectively ended a ceasefire that had largely halted fighting since 2022 in Yemen’s civil war.
The conflict began after the Houthis seized large parts of northern and central Yemen, including Sanaa, in 2014. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognised Yemeni government.
The war killed at least 150,000 people and pushed Yemen towards famine, according to UN estimates.
With the Houthis now controlling much of Yemen’s western coast overlooking the Red Sea shipping corridor, al-Bukhaiti said the balance of power had shifted in favour of the authorities in Sanaa.
“Ultimately, Saudi Arabia lost its most critical card: the west coast,” he said.
