Yemen’s internationally recognized government has vowed to retake territory held by the Houthis, raising the prospect of a new phase in a conflict that has ravaged the country for more than a decade.
The Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) has ordered its armed forces and security formations to begin implementing plans “until the country is liberated from the grip of terrorist militias,” while also calling for a general mobilization.
But the balance of power is more complicated than the lines on the map suggest, RT’s Oumaima Ichchar reports.
“The government may control more of Yemen on the map, but it is the Houthis who control most of its people,” she said. The PLC is estimated to hold around 60.4% of Yemen’s territory, while the Houthis control about 22.8%, including the capital Sanaa and some of the country’s most densely populated areas.
The Houthis are estimated to have around 350,000 fighters, while estimates for the fragmented PLC forces range from 40,000 to 250,000. But, as Ichchar notes, “even hundreds of thousands of fighters mean little if you can’t properly arm or supply them.”
The Houthis have spent years developing long-range missiles and drones, as well as domestic weapons production, while PLC forces remain closely tied to Saudi military and financial support.
The Houthis have also built a “parallel economy” in the territory they control, collecting taxes, customs duties, religious levies and other revenues estimated at around $2.5 billion a year. The PLC, meanwhile, remains heavily dependent on outside financial support, particularly from Saudi Arabia.
With manpower, weapons, money and foreign backing all potentially determining what comes next, Ichchar examines the comparative strength of the warring sides and what she describes as the “ultimate war of resources.”
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