Iran is hosting Mohammad Abdul Salam, a Houthi leader who serves as the spokesman of its Ansarullah movement, Iran’s official news agency, Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), reported Tuesday.
The report was one of several about Iran hosting terrorist leaders and delegations from groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Houthis. They were all in town for the inauguration ceremony held for Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed overnight in Tehran, Hamas said, meaning that one of the key terrorists apparently will not be traveling home after the meetings with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has held a brief meeting with a senior official of Yemen’s ruling Houthi Ansarullah movement,” IRNA reported.
It was not clear why Iranian state media sought to highlight that the meeting was brief. The reason might be that the Houthis could not send a more senior official.
“Ayatollah Khamenei on Tuesday met with Mohammad Abdul Salam, who serves as spokesman of Ansarullah, and extended his greetings to Ansarullah leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi,” IRNA reported. “In the meeting, the Supreme Leader also hailed the steadfastness of the Yemeni people and their support for the oppressed people of Gaza.”
Attacking ships in the Red Sea
Iran was hosting the Houthis as part of a process of receiving delegations from Iranian-backed groups around the region. Tehran is also seeking to coordinate more attacks and pressure on Israel.
The Houthis have played a key role in this campaign. They have been attacking ships in the Red Sea and also targeting Eilat. Recently, they also targeted Tel Aviv with a kamikaze drone. Israel retaliated with airstrikes on Hodeidah, a large port city on the Red Sea.
Therefore, the Houthi presence in Iran is important and illustrates how Iran is continuing to manage a network of proxies in the region and use them against Israel.