Israeli media claims Yemeni Houthis planning ground attack on borders

Israeli security circles are reportedly “concerned” by the possibility that Yemen’s Ansar Allah movement, known as the Houthis, could deploy ground forces to Israel’s borders and launch an attack, according to the Israeli newspaper Maariv.

The paper reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an extended security meeting on Sunday, beginning at 5pm and lasting late into the night, to review preparedness for potential conflict on multiple fronts: Iran, Yemen, Lebanon and Gaza. The meeting was the first broad security discussion Netanyahu has held with senior defence officials since returning from a visit to the United States.

According to Maariv, military sources said the Israeli army is currently working to build operational capabilities to confront all four fronts simultaneously. They said Military Intelligence (Aman), the Mossad, and other branches are compiling target banks for each front, while no clear priority has yet been set regarding which theatre would take precedence in the event of escalation.

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At the start of the meeting, Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant were briefed on developments across the various fronts. These included assessments of ammunition stocks and the extent of Hamas’s recovery in Gaza, both in terms of its military capabilities and its ability to govern parts of the Strip.

With regard to Yemen, the report said the Israeli security establishment is closely monitoring a “learning process” by the Houthis. Despite internal challenges and ongoing tensions with Saudi Arabia, Israeli assessments suggest the Houthis continue to seek ways to challenge Israel, ranging from launching ballistic missiles to the potential deployment of ground forces towards Israel’s borders.

Maariv reported that the Israeli army recently carried out a large-scale exercise involving Division 80, which is responsible for securing Israel’s southern borders with Egypt and Jordan. The drill reportedly simulated scenarios including raids by hostile forces, attempts to seize military sites, infiltrate a tourist city, take captives and carry out killings, including scenarios involving Houthi forces.

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