Iranian support
The Huthis are supported by Iran, a major regional power and sworn enemy of Israel. They are members of the Tehran-backed “axis of resistance,” which brings together various anti-Israel organisations in the region, including Palestinian Hamas militants and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, as well as diverse groups in Iraq and Syria.
Military strength
The group’s military strength was estimated several years ago at around 200,000 fighters, a force which is well-trained and accustomed to combat in Yemen’s arid and mountainous terrain.
Popularity
Despite thousands of its fighters being killed, the Huthis continue to attract young recruits in a country of about 30 million people struggling with one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.
Shiite minority origins
Originating in the north of Yemen, the Huthis were founded as a movement in the 1990s to fight the alleged marginalization of their minority Zaidi community, a branch of Shiite Islam, in the majority Sunni country.