Ansar Allah began as a revival movement for Yemen's sizeable Zaidi Shiite Muslim sect in the 1990s and began to grow in size and influence through the turn of the century. The group was headed by Abdul-Malik al-Houthi's elder brother, Hussein al-Houthi, until his death at the hands of Yemeni security forces in 2004.

The Houthi militant group in Yemen said it would resume attacks on Israeli ships for the first time in about two months after demanding the country ended a ban on aid entering Gaza.