Voices from the Arab press: Yemen’s fight to retake Sana'a mirrors Syria’s liberation of Damascus

A weekly roundup of Arab press opinion. The lead piece by Abdulrahman Al-Rashed in Asharq al-Awsat argues that Yemen's fight to retake Sanaa from Houthi control mirrors Syria's liberation of Damascus, framing the conflict as a war against Iran's proxies. The column also covers Iraqi Kurds' concerns following coalition withdrawal.

This week's 'Voices from the Arab press' column features an analysis from Asharq al-Awsat's Abdulrahman Al-Rashed, who argues that Yemen's current war to retake Sanaa from Houthi control mirrors Syria's liberation of Damascus from Bashar al-Assad's regime. The piece frames the conflict as a war against Iran's Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah, noting that Quds Force commander Abdul Reza Shahlai directed the Houthis' latest offensive. It contrasts the current war with the 2015 conflict, citing new factors: unified international support, the strategic importance of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and the humanitarian toll on 22 million Yemenis under Houthi rule. The analysis claims the Houthis differ little from ISIS and Hezbollah and have transformed Yemen into a transit route for smugglers and a haven for al-Qaeda. The column also includes a separate piece on Iraqi Kurds' concerns following coalition withdrawal.