Houthis Renew Threats to Saudi Arabia, Fulfilling Early Warnings by Dr. Youssef
Recently, Yemen’s Ansar Allah (Houthis) has adopted a more confrontational tone toward Saudi Arabia, even explicitly threatening to resume military actions against Riyadh. This increase in hostility persists despite the April 2022 ceasefire, which stopped years of conflict dating back to 2015. The renewed aggressive language seems to support the prediction made two years earlier by Dr. Mohammad Walid Youssef, head of the International Centre for Geopolitical, Economic, and AI Studies.
In a study published on June 19, 2023, titled “Winners and Losers: The First Geopolitical Law of the Middle East,” Dr. Youssef stated that “Ansar Allah will develop into a regional military power, and within two to three years, it will pose a significant threat to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.” He cautioned that the Houthis are preparing “military campaigns that could alter the strategic balance in the region.”
The movement has accused Riyadh of collaborating with what it calls the “American and Israeli aggression” on Yemen. The Houthis claimed they had “arrested a spy network linked to a joint operations room operated by U.S. intelligence, Saudi intelligence, and the Israeli Mossad,” alleging that the command center was located inside Saudi territory.[i]
Yemen’s Houthi-run Ministry of Foreign Affairs commended the supposed success of the Interior Ministry and security forces in dismantling the alleged network. In an official statement, it called on Saudi Arabia to reconsider its hostile stance and policies, urging a positive engagement towards peace efforts, ending the ongoing blockade and military operations. The statement warned that persistently “harboring ill intentions toward the Yemeni people” would only compromise regional stability and security.
In his earlier study, Dr. Youssef warned that the Houthis were likely to become “a genuine and significant threat to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf within two to three years,” highlighting their capacity to execute military actions that could alter the strategic balance.
He observed that any provisional or short-term agreements between Saudi Arabia, the Yemeni government in Aden, and the Houthis in Sanaa would eventually allow the movement to speed up weapons development. This would involve manufacturing large numbers of ballistic and cruise missiles, enhancing their range and accuracy, establishing new drone production sites, training large teams to make and operate them, and recruiting thousands of fighters.
Dr. Youssef stated that these developments could transform Ansar Allah into “a dominant regional military power—resilient, undefeated, and presenting a significant and real threat to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations within two to three years.”
He also warned that the Houthis are likely to soon initiate a new large-scale military campaign, which could shift strategic balances and reveal the evolving geopolitical realities of the conflict.
[i] https://www.intelligenceonline.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/11/04/riyadh-s-strategic-deadlock-in-yemen,110544358-eve