Significant diplomatic activity in Riyadh and the Houthis are mobilizing... Are there arrangements for a military escalation in Yemen?

American diplomacy has been remarkably active in Riyadh over the past two days, holding a series of meetings with senior officials in the Yemeni legitimacy to discuss combating terrorism, while the Houthis have shown a state of apprehension and security mobilization to confront what they called a "malicious plot" targeting them.

This comes a week after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the focus of American analyses on how the next Trump administration might deal with the Houthis, and exploit the state of weakness suffered by Iran's allies after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, which might rearrange the geopolitical cards again in the region.

With the fall of the Syrian regime, the Houthis appeared to be afraid of repeating the scenario in Yemen against them. The Houthi spokesman and negotiator, Mohammed Abdul Salam, considered that their situation in Yemen is not similar to Syria. This makes the diplomatic moves perhaps within the framework of discussing the variables in the region and how they could affect Yemen.

The Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, held a meeting with an American official in the fight against terrorism, and another separate meeting with the Minister of Interior, Ibrahim Haydan, while the American Ambassador to Yemen held a meeting with the member of the Presidential Council, Abdul Rahman Al-Mahrami, who was also present in the previous meetings, in a remarkable diplomatic activity at a sensitive time in the region.

"Combating Terrorism" is the title of American activity

During the American meetings with Yemeni government officials, talk of combating terrorism emerged, and this coincided with an article by the Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council, Ilan Berman, in Newsweek magazine, indicating that the correct way to deal with the Houthis is to classify them as pirates, explaining that piracy is a crime subject to universal jurisdiction under international law.

Al-Alimi reviewed with the head of the US State Department's Office of Counterterrorism, Jesse Levinson, the terrorist threats fueled by the Houthi militias and the organizations collaborating with them, including serious violations, attacks, and ongoing acts of piracy on maritime cargo ships, according to what was reported by the Saba Agency.

Al-Alimi expressed the Presidential Leadership Council and the government's aspiration to double international pressure on the Houthi militias, including classifying them as a terrorist organization, drying up their sources of funding, and arming them.

Meanwhile, Presidential Council member Al-Mahrami discussed with US Ambassador Stephen Fagin the economic and humanitarian repercussions in Yemen in light of the continued escalation of the Houthi militias on international shipping lines in the Red Sea. They discussed ways to enhance cooperation between the two sides to combat terrorism and support peace and stability efforts.

For his part, Interior Minister Ibrahim Haydan stressed - during a separate meeting with the US counterterrorism official and Ambassador Fagin - the importance of supporting the Yemeni government's efforts to enhance stability and confront terrorist organizations and Houthi militias that threaten the security and safety of Yemen and neighboring countries.

The head of the US State Department's Office of Counterterrorism expressed the United States' readiness to support these counterterrorism efforts through training, technical assistance, and capacity building. The US ambassador also affirmed his country's commitment to enhancing stability in Yemen and supporting efforts aimed at achieving sustainable peace, according to the official agency.

Houthis on alert

In return, the Houthis are issuing threats against any move targeting them, and this was evident in statements from the highest level in the group rejecting comparing Yemen to Syria. The successive collapse of Iran’s allies has put the Houthis in a state of permanent alert and they are anticipating all scenarios.

Yesterday, Sunday, Houthi security leaders held a meeting headed by the Houthi leader appointed as Minister of Interior in the group’s unrecognized government, Abdul Karim Amir al-Din al-Houthi, who indicated that they are going through a dangerous phase, according to what was reported by Houthi media.

The Houthi leader pointed to raising the level of vigilance and sense of responsibility to thwart the malicious conspiracies being hatched against them. He directed to intensify work, especially during the current period. He said: "Everyone must be prepared to engage in this confrontation and thwart the conspiracies."

What is clear from the meeting of the Houthi security leaders is that there is an undeclared state of emergency that the Houthi militias are experiencing, as they anticipate scenarios in which they could engage in battles to confront a possible attack to topple the militia system that has controlled the capital, Sana’a, since September 21, 2014.

The Houthi media discourse seemed to be more directed towards comparing their power to the fact that they possess weapons that could cause a fire in the entire region, and that they have about 200,000 fighters. This was confirmed by Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam in his interview with Al Masirah TV. This Houthi approach confirms the state of confusion experienced by the group, which is living in conditions worse than those of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Are there arrangements for military activity against the Houthis?

During the past two days, the meetings between the Americans and the leaders of the legitimate government in Riyadh focused on combating terrorism, and there were harsh statements to confront the Houthis, while the British and French ambassadors seemed committed to a political settlement to end the Yemeni crisis and rejected any escalation that would hinder peace efforts.

Through the diplomatic meetings held by American officials with senior leaders in the Yemeni Presidential Council and the Yemeni government, the focus seemed to be on combating terrorism and confronting the Houthis in particular, and this provides part of the arrangements that may be discussed between the active parties in Yemen during this stage.

The US embassy said about the diplomatic meetings - in brief statements on the X platform - that they discussed "regional security issues and confronting the Houthi aggression inside and outside Yemen", and also discussed "combating the malicious activities of the Houthis, working together in the field of combating terrorism, and US support for the stability and security of Yemen."

In the same context, Britain and France participated, along with the United States, in the same diplomatic activity, in separate meetings held by the ambassadors of London and Paris, with the member of the Presidential Council and the governor of Marib, Sultan Al-Arada, who stressed that the hostile activities of the Houthis undermine the peace process in Yemen and destabilize regional and international security and peace, according to what was reported by the official Saba news agency.

Major General Al-Arada met with the French Ambassador to Yemen, Catherine Qarm Kamoun, in the presence of the French Military Attaché, Junaid Godey. Al-Arada called for taking deterrent measures against the local and regional parties obstructing the peace process in Yemen, to ensure the achievement of a comprehensive, just and sustainable peace that ends the Yemeni crisis.

For her part, the French ambassador affirmed her country's commitment to supporting the Yemeni government and international efforts aimed at ending the Yemeni crisis, and its rejection of any escalation that would hinder peace efforts in Yemen and reach a comprehensive peaceful settlement in the country.

In the same context, the British Ambassador to Yemen, Abda Sharif, renewed - during a meeting with Major General Al-Arada - her country's commitment to supporting peaceful solutions in Yemen, and continuing to work with all parties to support the peace process and restore security and stability, according to what was reported by the official "Saba" agency .