CEP Non-Resident Fellow Ari Heistein made an appearance on “The WarCast” podcast from War On The Rocks to discuss recent events in Yemen.

CEP Non-Resident Fellow Ari Heistein writes: "It has been widely acknowledged that the Houthi attacks against Israel and international shipping that followed Hamas’s deadly October 7th attacks last year, were used to defuse a domestic crisis. Shortly before that terrible day, the Houthis were facing unprecedented opposition at home due to growing resentment over their misrule. That changed in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks, and Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Since the Houthis started bombarding Israel and international shipping one year ago, the group has promoted massive public rallies in Yemen to celebrate its “resistance” throughout the territory under their control. It has been generally assumed that the Houthi offensive had redirected public anger, but recent public opinion polls tell a different story."

"Hezbollah, Hamas, and Houthis ... and all eyes on the skies over Iran. Catch Jonathan Schanzer’s discussion on the Foundation for Defense of Democracies Morning Brief w/ terrorism expert Edmund Fitton-Brown. We’ve got lots of ground to cover on Iran's terror network, so make sure to tune in."

"Edmund Fitton-Brown, senior adviser at the Counter Extremism Project and the UK's former ambassador to Yemen, added to these concerns.

He pointed to the Yemeni Houthi rebels, another arm of Iran's "axis of resistance", as a further threat to consider as the conflict in the Middle East potentially spreads.

Fitton-Brown noted the importance of both groups, but maintained Hezbollah as the more "crucial Iranian asset", adding the worrying warning that it cannot be stopped by Israel."

“... Edmund Fitton-Brown, a senior adviser to the Counter-Extremism Project, a transatlantic thinktank and advocacy group, said it was predictable that the Houthis and other groups would make such threats. “We shouldn’t read too much into the rhetoric … the Palestinian groups do not have the capability to escalate outside the [occupied] West Bank, while the Israelis have been so successful in last couple of weeks that I don’t think Lebanese Hezbollah can come to Iran’s defence.” Hezbollah, the most powerful of Iran’s proxies and the keystone of the coalition, is reeling from the Israeli assassination campaign. The group has lost nearly 500 fighters since it started firing into Israel in support of its ally, Hamas, last October and was then drawn into a prolonged war of attrition.”

"Edmund Fitton-Brown, Senior Advisor to the Counter Extremism Project and former Ambassador of the UK to Yemen, told MailOnline: 'Any successful upgrade of Houthi capabilities would also likely draw a kinetic Israeli response.'"