“Yemen’s Houthis Launch Second Missile Attack on Israel, Escalating Regional Tensions”

Story highlights
Iran-backed Houthis launched fresh missile and drone attacks on Israel, escalating the West Asia conflict. With Red Sea shipping under threat and Hormuz disruptions, regional tensions rise as US-Iran backchannel talks and Pakistan-led mediation efforts continue.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis on Sunday (Mar 29) said that they carried out a second ‌attack on Israel in less than 24 hours using missiles and drones, hinting that the war in West Asia is widening. The group vowed to continue ⁠military operations in the coming days. Houthis launched their first attack on Mar 28 and fired a missile on Israel a day after it warned of intervention if attacks on Iran continued. Israel said it intercepted the missile. The Iranian-backed group said it fired a barrage of ballistic missiles “targeting sensitive Israeli military sites” in response to the targeting of Iran, Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestinian territories. It added that its operations will continue until the “aggression” on all fronts ends.

Israel’s military said that it was intecepting a missile fired from Yemen. Israel’s military “has identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory, aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat,” it said in a statement. “The public is requested to follow the Home Front Command’s defensive guidelines.”
Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz
According to AFP, since the war began a month ago, Saudi Arabia has rerouted much of its oil exports via the Red Sea port of Yanbu to avoid the Strait of Hormuz. With Iran blocking Hormuz for the US, Israel and their allies, many Gulf shipments have been rerouted through Oman’s Salalah port on the Arabian Sea. The Houthis’ entry into the conflict adds to regional tensions, ‌particularly ⁠given their ability to strike targets far beyond Yemen and disrupt shipping lanes ⁠around the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea. During Israel’s recent war in Gaza, following ⁠the October 7, 2023, attacks, the Houthis, claiming solidarity with Palestinians, attacked shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, forcing companies to take costly detours.

How the war began?
The war began when the United States and Israel launched pre emptive airstrikes across Iran on Feb 28. The strikes that followed killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, prompting Tehran to launch an all-out offensive not only on Israel, but also US bases in Gulf nations. Last week, Trump blinked and hinted at talks and is said to have sent a 15-point peace deal. On Mar 25, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that the exchange of messages between US and Iran has taken place through “friendly countries”, but clarified that it “does not mean negotiations with the US.” Reports indicate that Pakistan is acting as a mediator and will host foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt in Islamabad on Monday for talks on the crisis. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian thanked Islamabad “for its mediation efforts to stop the aggression,” while Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Friday he expected a direct US-Iran meeting in Pakistan “very soon.” US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said that such a meeting could take place this week.