- Title: Houthi armed power has grown rapidly during Yemen's war
- Date: 17th September 2019
- Summary: First glimpses of Houthi numbers in Sanaa SANAA, YEMEN (FILE - AUGUST 23, 2014) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF HOUTHI PROTESTERS ATTENDING RALLY / CARRYING SIGNS READING: (Arabic) "THE PEOPLE DEMAND AN END TO CORRUPTION" Houthi soldiers patrolling Sanaa streets SANAA, YEMEN (FILE - SEPTEMBER 30, 2014) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF HOUTHI SOLDIERS STANDING ON STREET / CONTROLLING TRAFFIC VARIOUS OF HOUTHI VEHICLE WITH MACHINE GUN ON TOP VARIOUS OF SIGN MOUNTED ON ENTRANCE TO TOWN READING: (Arabic) "ALLAHU AKBAR, DEATH TO AMERICA, DEATH TO ISRAEL, DAMN THE JEWS, AND VICTORY TO ISLAM" (HOUTHI SLOGAN) Houthis hold armed rally in show of force SANAA, YEMEN (FILE - DECEMBER 19, 2018) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ARMED HOUTHIS AT RALLY POSING WITH WEAPONS AND CHANTING SLOGANS
- Embargoed: 1st October 2019 21:05
- Keywords: military Houthi rebels Yemen missiles Aramco Saudi Arabia Houthi timeline weapons Houthis
- Location: SANAA AND ADEN, YEMEN / ABHA AND RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA / UNKNOWN LOCATION
- City: SANAA AND ADEN, YEMEN / ABHA AND RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA / UNKNOWN LOCATION
- Country: Various
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA001AX1RBK7
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES
Yemen's Houthi fighters have built an arsenal using local manufacturing, foreign expertise and parts smuggled from Iran, their ally, and elsewhere to the point they now boast of drones and missiles able to reach deep into Saudi Arabia.
Whether or not the Iran-aligned group carried out Saturday's (September 14) crippling raid on a Saudi oil plant -- as it asserts -- its capabilities mean it can feasibly claim responsibility for the strike, a humiliating blow against its top adversary.
Much remains unclear about the attack: Some Western officials believe responsibility lies with Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, or Iran itself.
What is certain is that Houthi weapon capabilities have evolved rapidly in the past couple of years in accuracy and distance, analysts, U.N. data and Houthi media indicate.
The Houthis' growing military clout has checked Saudi ambitions in Yemen.
Riyadh leads a coalition that intervened in 2015 to restore the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, which the Houthis ousted from power in the capital Sanaa in late 2014.
This proliferation has taken place despite a years-long air and sea blockade on Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen and years of strikes the coalition say are against weapons depots, drone manufacturing locations and military communications hubs.
(Production: Tarek Fahmy) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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