Who are Houthis, Yemen-based rebels attacking ships in Red Sea?
Image Credit: newsbytes
The ongoing attacks on cargo vessels in the Red Sea have put the spotlight on Yemen-based Houthi rebels. The Houthis are an armed group from a sub-sect of the Shia Muslim minority, the Zaidis, and take their name from the movement's founder, Hussein al-Houthi. The rebel group, formally known as Ansar Allah (Partisans of God), was formed in the 1990s to battle what they viewed as the corruption of the then-president, Ali Abdullah Saleh.