Yemen Monitor / Sana’a / Special:
The leader of the Houthis, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, has launched a sharp attack on the Lebanese government, accusing it of “treason and a betrayal of sovereignty” for accepting an “ US paper containing Israeli dictates.”
In a lengthy speech on Thursday, al-Houthi expressed his fear that Hezbollah would be disarmed, warning that this would make Lebanon “vulnerable” to Israel. He described the Lebanese government’s decision to accept the American paper as a “major scandal,” asserting that it was not a “free and responsible Lebanese decision” but merely an “adoption of Israeli-American dictates.” He considered this acceptance to be an “insult to the Lebanese people in every sense of the word.”
He added that the Lebanese government is showing “shameful weakness” and “subservience” to US and Israeli pressure, describing its role as a “policeman for the Israelis.” Al-Houthi linked this stance to the “strife” that Israel seeks to instigate in Lebanon.
Regarding Hezbollah’s weapons, or what he called the “resistance,” al-Houthi considered this armament to be the “only element of strength” in Lebanon, and that it is what protects the country from the “Israeli enemy.” He said that the Lebanese army “will not protect Lebanon” in the face of Israel, citing history as proof that “the Lebanese army is far from being given a political decision to confront Israel.”
The Houthi group in Sana’a is watching with increasing concern the growing calls to disarm its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah. It considers these calls a dangerous precedent that threatens its own armed presence within the Iranian-led “Axis of Resistance.” This concern is exacerbated by the recent setbacks suffered by the axis, especially the fall of the Syrian regime, which raises fears of a “domino effect” that could target other allied non-state actors.
