Saudi Arabia fears an attack by the Houthis in Yemen due to its ties with Israel.

After Israel's attack in Yemen, various media around the world spread news and estimates that Saudi Arabia secretly cooperated with Israel, and allowed Israeli Air Force planes to fly in its airspace to attack the port of Hodeidah - one of the main strongholds of the Houthis in Yemen.

According to security sources in Israel, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is under pressure from these publications and fears that Saudi Arabia's silence on the subject will be interpreted by the Houthis as an admission of guilt. That is why he hastened to publish a denial of these reports.

General Turki Al-Malaki, spokesman for the Saudi Ministry of Defense, published a statement on July 21 in which it was stated that Saudi Arabia had no connection or participation in the attack on the city of Hodeidah in Yemen. He emphasized that "Saudi Arabia will not allow any entity to penetrate its airspace."

The Saudis have been under threats from the Houthis in Yemen for several weeks. The leader of the Houthis, Abdelmalek Al-Houthi, recently threatened to attack airports and banks in Saudi Arabia, accusing you of "waging an economic war against the Houthis in Yemen."

Saudi officials say that bin Salman has decided to postpone the discussion on the issue of signing a normalization agreement with Israel until after the US presidential elections, next November.

According to them, his decision stems from several developments in recent weeks. One of the most important of them is the pressure and threats of the Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia, under the direction of Iran, that signing a normalization with Israel will lead to the violation of the ceasefire agreement between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in Yemen, and the renewal of Houthi attacks with missiles and drones on the main cities in Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis in Yemen have high military capabilities, and this is reflected in the precise attacks on the main cities in Saudi Arabia and its oil facilities. They have "Quds 2" precision ballistic missiles with a range of 2,000 km, and also precision "Vaid" UAVs with a range of 2,500 km.

The Houthis managed to overcome the air defense systems of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia's oil industry, for example, was severely damaged by the attack on the Aramco oil facilities in Albuquerque in September 2019, by dozens of Iranian missiles and drones launched by the Houthis in Yemen. The Trump administration at that time did not have to defend Saudi Arabia. The United Arab Emirates was also attacked in 2022 with missiles and drones by the Houthis in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia is concerned about being named as an indirect partner in the Israeli attack on the port of Hodeidah in Yemen. The Houthis have a good intelligence system, and they are also helped by Iranian intelligence. If they have an indication that indeed Israeli planes received permission from the Saudi royal house and flew in Saudi airspace on their way to attack the port of Hodeidah, they will not go over it in silence, and Saudi Arabia will pay the price.

Unlike Iran, the Houthis are almost uncontrollable, and they define themselves as those who make independent decisions. That is why Bin Salman is rightly concerned about the possibility of an attack by the Houthis on his country.

Yoni Ben Menachem, NEWSRAEL Contributor and Epoch magazine commentator on Middle East affairs, is an expert in the field who has covered significant events in Israeli history, such as the first and second intifadas, military operations and more. He speaks the Arabic language in several different dialects, and has connections with senior figures in the Arab world, as well as in the political and military leadership in Israel. Ben Menachem served as editor-in-chief and CEO of the Israel Broadcasting Authority.