Yemen’s government needs tribes to defeat the Houthis. Will they join?

Sanaa, Yemen – The Yemeni government’s new military offensive against the Houthis is testing more than the balance of forces in the country – it is also testing whether the government can persuade powerful tribes in Houthi-controlled areas that the balance of power is beginning to shift.For years, many of the tribes hostile or wary of the Iran-backed Houthis have stopped short of openly confronting the movement, deterred by their military strength and by previous failed uprisings. Those same tribes are now looking to the internationally recognised government’s newly-activated frontlines – on the Red Sea coast, Marib and al-Jawf primarily – to see if the limited advances made since the Dawn of Yemen military operation launch this week can turn into sustained gains.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Three killed, 36 injured in Houthi attacks on Saudi airports, Riyadh sayslist 2 of 3More than 200,000 displaced as fighting escalates in Yemen, UN sayslist 3 of 3Yemen’s Houthis attack Aden airport; Saudi forces down missile near Riyadhend of listThe offensive by the Saudi Arabia-backed government forces follows major Houthi gains in September, when the armed group also known a...