US correspondence reviewed by Asharq Al-Awsat revealed that Washington had issued a warning to the Houthis in Yemen through “security channels.” The substance of the warning was not disclosed in the messages, but it was followed by a US assertion that Washington was not negotiating with the group. The Houthis’ outreach suggests that the group is seeking to consolidate its position after weeks of military operations culminated in advances along Yemen’s western coast overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The gains pose a fresh threat to international shipping through the strategic waterway, which carries 12% of global trade. The clarification in the US diplomatic correspondence came after President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance said there had been contact with the group, although neither explained the nature of the communication. Meanwhile, during a UN Security Council session on the Bab al-Mandeb Strait on Tuesday, Washington stated: “The US supports Yemen’s legitimate government in confronting the Iran-backed Houthi militia. We call on the Houthis to halt their advance, withdraw from the territory they have seized and stop launching attacks.” On the ground, Yemen’s government is raising its level of military readiness as it seeks to regain the initiative following recent setbacks on the Taiz and western coastal fronts. Government forces have made slow but seemingly more sustained progress on other fronts, including in al-Jawf and al-Bayda, while continuing to repel Houthi attacks and military buildups near Marib. Government forces are engaged in fierce battles with the Houthis, which began escalating their operations in August. The group’s opponents accuse it of violating de-escalation arrangements under orders intended to ease pressure on Iran and enable Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to use the Houthis as leverage against the United States in the war Washington launched in February 2026, which intensified after Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz. Why security channels? Observers who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat said the mere use of security channels did not indicate that negotiations or a deal were underway, or even that Washington had accepted the Houthis’ assurances. Assessing the Houthi move and the US response, Baraa Shiban, an associate fellow at Britain’s Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, said the group was trying to compensate for its lack of regional and international recognition by exaggerating claims that it had opened channels of communication with the US administration. Asked about the “security channels,” Shiban said Western governments commonly maintained this type of contact with militias and terrorist groups. Such communication, however, remained limited, took place outside diplomatic or political frameworks and dealt only with sensitive or urgent security matters. Iranian tactics News that the Houthis had contacted the United States was not treated as a passing development. Yemenis sought to understand the group’s sudden move, particularly because its slogan calls for “death to America”, raising the question of how it could communicate with Washington. Mahmoud Shehrah, an associate fellow at Britain’s Chatham House, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the development was “part of a Houthi strategy that represents an extension of Iran’s and the Revolutionary Guards’ conduct and negotiating tactics.” Shehrah, a former Yemeni diplomat, said the Houthis’ approach was based on gradually escalating tensions, launching a swift offensive and then offering assurances if they made gains, in an effort to avoid becoming embroiled in an all-out war. That, he said, was what had happened in Bab al-Mandeb. The Houthis had now “taken a big bite” and were trying to digest it. The group was therefore seeking to consolidate its gains and, in the meantime, needed to offer assurances to prevent a swift response. It consequently sought to reassure the US and the international community. The group also consistently sought to isolate its opponents, a tactic it had repeatedly employed in the past. Shehrah recalled that when the Houthis captured Sanaa, they began by reassuring all political forces. Once they had consolidated their presence, they met each party separately and told it that the other side was the enemy, until they had eliminated them all. He said the group now wanted to employ the same approach internationally, regardless of whether it could succeed.
