Yemen's Houthis trying to distract Israel in Red Sea: Analyst

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With attacks being carried out against civilian vessels plying the Red Sea, Yemen's powerful rebel group, the Houthis, are "demonstrating solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza", according to Nabeel Khoury, a former US diplomat and deputy chief of mission at the US embassy in Yemen.

"They are trying to play a part in what is known as the axis of resistance" in the region, Khoury told Al Jazeera.

"What Hezbollah is doing along the Lebanese border, engaging the Israelis and diverting some of the Israeli resources...the Houthis are trying to do that same thing by distracting the Israelis and causing the Israelis to devote some deployments to the Red Sea," he added.

While the Houthi action "may be limited", it still reverberates around the world as the Red Sea sees a bulk of oil and natural gas shipments going through it, and any disruption creates an impact on the world market, Khoury said.