Ten years on, where do the warring parties stand? And is there a way out of the stalemate? This is not just a civil war - it’s a battle between rival camps in the Middle East, led by Iran on the one hand, and Saudi Arabia on the other. The Houthis are said to be Iran’s proxy, but they sometimes act against Tehran’s interest. We go granular on the complexities in the alliances and the rivalries that shape the conflict. Producer: Kriszta Satori, Elchin Suleymanov Presenter: Krassi Twigg
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Ten years ago, the Houthis took the Yemeni capital Sanaa in what marked the start of a devast war.
Originally a ragtag militia from the mountainous north, they are now holding power over more than half of the country while the internationally recognized government is watching on from Riyadh.
This is not just a civil war.
It's a battle between rival camps in the Middle east led by Iran on the one hand and Saudi Arabia on the other.
The Saudi messaging was this is an easy fight, it would be over quick.
And it all ended up getting quite intractable and much more complex.
The Houthis receive training from Iran.
They do receive arms and money as part of a broader network called the Resistance.
The Resistance being Iran's network of allies and proxies.
The fear of Iran has always been there.
The UAE and Saudi are official allies.
Helping Saudi Arabia is kind of expected from Gulf countries.
You would see Houthi projectiles being blown up over Saudi skies, the very urban areas that Saudi Arabia would like to develop with foreign funding.
It's not a good look for the image that the kingdom is trying to project.
The ongoing conflict creates this huge power vacuum there pretty ideal for jihadist groups to expand.
This is a multi layered conflict full of twists and turns and with no end in sight.