Objectives of the Aggression Against Yemen:

The Collapse of the “Restoring Legitimacy” Narrative and the Exposure of the Hegemonic Project in Light of the Leader’s Speeches

Since the launch of the aggression against Yemen in March 2015, the coalition countries — led by the United States and executed through regional tools — promoted political and media slogans presented as justifications for war, foremost among them the claim of “restoring legitimacy.” Yet the realities on the ground, the widespread crimes, and the direct targeting of Yemen’s people, resources, and sovereignty have dismantled these narratives and revealed the true objectives.

In a series of pivotal speeches, the Leader, Sayyid Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi, presented a comprehensive framework analyzing the aggression — defining its geopolitical, economic, cultural, and military motives, and linking them to the American-Zionist project in the region.

This report offers an expanded reading of these dimensions, drawing on real-world developments and evidence accumulated over ten years, to address the Leader’s core question:
“If they came to restore legitimacy as they claim, why did they destroy the country and kill Yemenis? And if that legitimacy were real, why would it support killing its own people?”

The Collapse of the “Restoring Legitimacy” Narrative

From the earliest days of the war, deep contradictions in the Saudi-UAE-American coalition’s narrative became evident. Rather than supporting what they called “legitimacy,” the coalition destroyed state institutions, fragmented the country politically and militarily, seized resources, ports, and islands, established foreign military bases, and managed provinces outside the framework of the Yemeni state.

The Leader repeatedly stressed that the so-called “legitimacy” was merely a political cover for a war targeting Yemen’s land and people. He affirmed that if this legitimacy were genuine, it would not sanction the killing of its citizens nor invite foreign invasion of its homeland.

With time, it became clear that the slogan “restoring legitimacy” was nothing more than a media façade — disconnected from the reality of occupation, looting, division, and dismantling of the state.

An American-Led War Executed Through Arab Proxies

The Leader emphasizes that the aggression against Yemen is first and foremost an American war, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE acting only as implementing tools.

In several speeches, he affirmed:

“This aggression is carried out under full American supervision, management, and cover. Without Washington’s permission, neither Saudi Arabia nor the UAE would have dared to wage such a war on a great nation like Yemen.”

The United States provided the political, intelligence, and logistical cover, shaped the targets, and oversaw operations — while Saudi Arabia and the UAE served as gloves for its project.

Thus, the war must be seen as a broad international aggression, orchestrated according to a system of dependency that serves U.S. and Israeli interests.

Yemen’s Geopolitical Position: The Primary Driver of the War

Yemen occupies a uniquely strategic location that has long attracted global powers. As the Leader explained, the aggression seeks to control:

The Bab al-Mandab Strait

Yemen’s long coastlines on the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea

Vital islands with military and economic importance

International navigation routes and energy corridors

The Leader notes that these locations place Yemen at the center of fierce global competition. U.S.-Israeli control over these areas is a cornerstone of their regional hegemony project.

Thus, the coalition moved from day one to occupy islands and ports and to turn Yemen into a controlled zone managed from abroad.

Natural Resources: The Economic Engine Behind the Aggression

The Leader’s speeches expose one of the most critical dimensions: systematic economic plunder.

Despite global portrayals of Yemen as “poor,” it possesses:

Significant oil and gas reserves

Untapped mineral wealth

A maritime position that makes it an economic gateway

What has happened in Hadhramaut, Shabwa, and al-Mahra reflects a deliberate economic agenda that involves:

Exporting oil and gas outside the state’s institutions

Controlling production fields

Signing illegal contracts

Smuggling resources without returning their revenues to the Yemeni people

Economic aims were a central motive of the war, not a secondary factor.

Fragmenting the State: A Strategy of Controlled Chaos

The Leader reveals a clear strategy behind the aggression that aims to:

Tear apart Yemen’s social fabric

Fuel regional and sectarian divisions

Create parallel authorities

Support militias with competing loyalties

Weaken and incapacitate state institutions

This fragmentation is not an accidental by-product but a deliberate plan to prevent Yemen from rising as a unified, independent nation.

The chaos seen in the occupied ar