2024-04-03 23:40:27
The Houthis, while wreaking havoc in the Red Sea, benefit from Iranian weapons and are considered part of Tehran’s “axis of resistance”. Come on, they don’t always act according to Iran’s orders.
Radio Liberty journalist Michael Scollon (Michael Scollon) writes about this.
Experts say the Houthis, who control northern Yemen, can move freely against Tehran’s main enemies, Israel, Saudi Arabia and the West. By keeping distance from the Houthis, Tehran is protecting itself from being drawn into a possible conflict in the Middle East.
“This does not mean that Iran created the Houthis”
Researcher at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin Hamidreza Azizi says that Iran’s support for the Houthis does not mean that they are Iran’s proxies.
“Especially since the start of the war in Yemen, since Saudi Arabia intervened in Yemen in 2015, there is no doubt that Iran has supported the Houthis… [İran] and now supports them in their growing campaign against Israel. However, this does not mean that the Houthis were created by Iran, or that the Houthis are an extension of the Quds Force (the foreign branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)).
Defense analyst for the Middle East at the global intelligence company “Janes”. Jeremy Binney(Jeremy Binnie), the main question is how much influence Tehran has on the Houthis.
This question has become even more urgent since the Houthis targeted Israel with missile strikes, and at the same time began to attack ships in the Red Sea, an important global supply route.
According to Binney, many see the Houthis as “certainly independent and very belligerent” and think they “can do more than the Iranians want.” Another view is that if Tehran needs Iranian personnel to use the advanced weapons it has provided to the Houthis, Iran “should have a serious say in when and how those weapons are used.”
Freedom radio