Houthi attacks show Iran's proxies could be 'wild card', analyst says

Iran says it has provided the US with a list of conditions for negotiating an end to the war, including ending the conflict on all fronts, including in Lebanon, releasing its frozen funds estimated at more than $100bn, lifting the naval blockade on its ports, and ending US interference in Iran's internal affairs. Meanwhile, the Houthis have launched a ballistic missile towards Riyadh for the first time in their latest escalation, raising questions about whether the US-Iran war and the Houthi-Saudi conflict are now inextricably linked.
Alexandru Georgescu, a military defence analyst and maritime security expert, told Al Jazeera there were "fairly good signals" that the US is considering its military options, with tankers seen on flight-tracking platforms suggesting movement in the air. He said that if the US were to strike again, it would be "more of the same", as Washington has no other major military tools in the region, while the question of what another campaign would achieve after seven months of military action remains unanswered. On the Houthis, he said they could be acting opportunistically but have been "constantly backed up by Iran", including with missile and drone technology, and described them as a prototype for Iran's use of drone warfare and maritime blockades. He said Houthi attacks on the East-West pipeline could indicate "some form of alignment" with Iran's objectives. On the Houthis' claim that they will attack only Saudi-linked shipping, Georgescu said such a guarantee is neither credible nor workable because international shipping involves a "mosaic of jurisdictions" covering cargo and vessel ownership, operators, crews and flag registries. He warned that this could allow the Houthis to target a much wider range of ships while still claiming to have respected their stated conditions.

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