By Faisal Abu Bakr | 2025-04-18

ADEN -- The Houthis fired a missile at Israel -- but hit Saudi Arabia instead.

The April 9 incident was not the first time the Iran-backed group has failed to accurately pinpoint a target.

Over the last month, the group has launched more than 18 ballistic missiles and two drones at Israel from territory it controls in Yemen.

Only 10 of them triggered air raid sirens in Israel, with Israeli media reporting April 15 that around half of the ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis have "failed."

Missiles fired by the Houthis intended for ships in the Red Sea and Gulf also have veered off course, putting civilian lives in danger.

The failed launches can be attributed to the elimination of specialized Houthi operators, a lack of advanced technology, and the use of expired fuel, Abaad Center for Strategic Studies director Abdul Salam Mohammed told Al-Fassel.

Though the Iranian regime has supported and upgraded the Houthis' "primitive" missile program, this has not prevented failed or errant missile launches, he said.

The transfer of technology, missile parts and missile fuel to Yemen has recently been impeded, he added, noting that fuel stores in al-Hodeidah were hit in recent US strikes, which "has degraded the missile program."

Houthis in disarray

The Houthis are keen to conceal their failures and reassure their supporters in Yemen that they have the upper hand, Mohammed said, noting that the group has been engaged in a social media disinformation campaign to this end.

Meanwhile the group's military infrastructure has come under fire, as top tier leaders are killed in the strikes or flee to safer areas.

US strikes targeting weapons depots, communications systems and radars "were precise and effective, as evidenced by the damage," Mohammed said. "They also targeted technical crews for drones and missiles."

As they come under fire, the Houthis also face "accelerating rifts and collapses within their ranks, and growing popular discontent," said Fahmi al-Zubairi, director general of the human rights office in Sanaa.

These factors "throw the group into disarray internally and undermine its military operations, including missile launches," he told Al-Fassel.

"While the group is announcing targeting of US or Israeli ships with ballistic missiles and drones, the facts show that many of these missiles either fall inside Yemeni territory or fail to accurately hit their military targets," al-Zubairi said.

"This poses a real danger to civilians in the areas where they fall," he added, noting that "this is a disaster in itself."