by Murad Abdo

ADEN, Yemen, July 13 (Xinhua) -- After years of deadly conflict that ravaged Yemen and caused worsening humanitarian situation, the Houthi rebels unveiled new types of "locally-made ballistic missiles and armed drones."

Pro-Houthi politicians and members of the rebels' ruling council inaugurated a military exhibition that contained allegedly new developed drones and missiles to be used against the Saudi Arabia-led coalition supporting Yemen's internationally recognized government.

The rebels claimed that their developed weapons "would change the course of the battle through reaching the depths of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and targeting vital locations there."

However, Yemeni analysts voiced a different view regarding the growing military capabilities of the Houthi rebels who stepped up their missile attacks against a number of airports in Saudi Arabia recently.

Fares Albeel, a college professor and political commentator, said the upgraded Houthi weapons, including the unmanned aircraft and ballistic missiles, may pose a danger, but won't leave a destructive effect or change the course of the battle in Yemen.

"The Houthis are not capable of confronting the Saudi-led coalition through Iran's military technology and strategy that are clearly present in their recent drone attacks and military operations," Fares said.

"The rebels mainly depend on weapons and tools that don't belong to the conventional military system," he explained.

"Like other armed factions linked to Iran in the region, the Houthi weapons such as the drones are capable of creating chaos and destabilizing security but cannot leave destruction or defeat other military powers," he concluded.

The Houthis unveiled new military hardware even as the UAE, a key partner of the Saudi-led coalition, announced a strategic and tactical redeployment of troops in Yemen.

Following the UAE's military plan, different Yemeni armed factions stationed in the country's Red Sea coast areas started forming a unified military leadership that will guide the anti-Houthi forces in an upcoming military operation.

An official of the pro-government forces based in Hodeidah confirmed to Xinhua that more than 25,000 troops deployed by the UAE are still in Hodeidah.

He said the UAE still has a significant role in leading the pro-government forces in Hodeidah and has participated in the formation of a joint command for all anti-Houthi forces in recent days.

Adil Al-Shujaa, a politics professor from Sanaa University, supported the formation of the joint military command of the pro-government forces.

"Leaving the responsibility for the Yemenis themselves is a good thing because the Saudi-led coalition is the only one leading the battle," Adel said.

"The Yemeni soldiers only have light weapons and handing over the air power for this unified Yemeni military leadership will lead to a decisive operation in Hodeidah's battle," he explained.

In response, the Houthi rebels beefed up their military presence in the Red Sea port city.

Sources from both warring sides confirmed that there is an intention to end the Stockholm Agreement and escalate the situation militarily as each side started preparing for new armed confrontations on Hodeidah's ground.

Yahya Abu Hatim, a strategic military expert, said the unified pro-government Yemeni forces in Hodeidah will be able to proceed the anti-Houthi military operations with more success in the upcoming period.

"Kicking the rebels out from the strategic city of Hodeidah and approaching from the capital Sanaa will force the Houthi militia to accept the political solutions and end the country's conflict," Hatim said.

The United Nations sponsored a series of negotiations between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and the Iranian-allied Houthi rebels but failed to achieve permanent peace in the impoverished Arab country.

"There is a frightening absence of the political situation in Yemen as the country's crisis became part of the regional conflict ... It's difficult to predict quick solutions to Yemen's complicated issue," said Fares.

During the past days, the Houthi rebels turned to launching attacks using numerous explosives-laden drones against vital institutions deep inside Saudi Arabia amid heightened tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia backed by the United States.

The Iran-allied Houthis launched a large military campaign and seized the capital Sanaa in late 2014, forcing Yemen's President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and his government to escape to Aden first and then neighboring Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia. along with other Arab countries, intervened militarily and began pounding the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa in March 2015 in response to an official public request from Hadi to protect Yemen.

Currently, some 24 million Yemenis, or 80 percent of the entire population, need humanitarian aid and protection, with some 20 million requiring help to secure food, the United Nations said. Enditem

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