Yemen’s Houthi movement has developed a diverse missile and drone arsenal that enables it to sustain attacks on strategic targets, as Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government it supports face renewed hostilities.
Since early September, the Houthis have targeted oil infrastructure and airports across Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh’s airport, which the supplied report says has been targeted 20 times. The group has also attempted, unsuccessfully, to strike the cities of Madina and Makkah.
The renewed confrontation follows a four-year truce. The report identifies a Saudi airstrike on Sanaa airport in July, intended to prevent a Houthi delegation from landing, as the trigger for the latest escalation.
April Longley Alley, a Yemen specialist at the Washington Institute, described the ensuing attacks as a cycle of retaliatory strikes.
“The Houthis framed this campaign as blockade for blockade, airport for airport, escalation for escalation,” she said.
A Diverse Missile and Drone Arsenal
The Houthis possess a range of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles. Their reported operations have also extended to targets near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a strategically important passage connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
New Delhi Closes Central Park Ahead of Protest Against Election Chief
According to Niranjan BS, a strategic weapons analyst at Jane’s, the group’s weapons have come from several sources. These include stockpiles seized when the Houthis captured Sanaa in 2014, complete systems smuggled into Yemen and locally assembled weapons made from imported components.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Military Balance database identifies several types of medium-range missiles in the Houthi arsenal, including systems derived from Iranian designs such as the Kheibar Shekan.
The group also possesses shorter-range weapons, including the Asef anti-ship missile, which the Wilson Center says is derived from Iran’s Khalij Fars missile family.
Cruise Missiles and Unmanned Aircraft
The Houthis also operate cruise missiles from Iran’s Quds family. According to the Wilson Center, the Quds-4 is believed to have a range of approximately 2,000 kilometres.
Their unmanned systems include both aerial and maritime drones, some of which are based on Iranian designs.
Niranjan said the Waeid-1 and Waeid-2 aerial drones are local copies of Iran’s Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 one-way attack drones, respectively.
The variety of weapons gives the group multiple ways to threaten infrastructure and maritime routes, complicating efforts to defend against attacks.
Iran’s Alleged Military Support
Iranian assistance has been an important factor in the development of the Houthi arsenal.
The Middle East Institute said Iran had provided critical military support, particularly through the supply of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicle systems.
In its report, the institute said components were manufactured in Iran and smuggled into Yemen through small boats, container ships and routes across the Oman-Yemen border, where they were assembled.
The United States has also targeted alleged procurement networks. In June 2024, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on a man in China suspected of links to the Houthis, saying he played a key role in obtaining materials used to manufacture advanced conventional weapons inside Yemen.
Houthis Seen as Capable of Sustaining Conflict
Despite years of conflict and repeated air campaigns, analysts believe the Houthis retain the ability to continue using their weapons over an extended period.
Longley Alley said the group had previously endured sustained airstrikes by Saudi Arabia, the United States and Israel.
“This is a battle-hardened group, and they have much less to lose than the Saudis,” she said.
She added that the Houthis may calculate they can sustain the confrontation longer because they are accustomed to absorbing attacks.
The group’s varied weapons, established supply networks and experience in prolonged conflict present continuing challenges for Saudi Arabia and other countries seeking to protect critical infrastructure and regional shipping.
