Lebanese political analyst Naji Safa said in a January 18, 2022 show on Al-Alam TV (Iran) that the Houthis should attack the Israeli port cities of Eilat, Tel Aviv, and Haifa with drones and missiles in order to draw international attention to the issue of Yemen. He said that this would cause the entire world to "race to the negotiating table" in order to find a political solution for the crisis. Safa said that this should take place as part of a three-stage strategy, in which the Houthis would also take control of the Bab Al-Mandab Strait and of the Ma'rib Governorate.
Naji Safa: "If the [UAE] retaliates, it will pay a heavy price. Allow me to suggest my strategic vision, according to which there are three steps that our brothers in Yemen in the army and the Popular Committees should take.
"First of all, they should regain the Bab Al-Mandab Strait in order to impose control over the international commercial traffic — both oil and military maritime transportation that pass there.
"[Secondly], they should complete their liberation of the Ma'rib [governorate], and then the Shabwa, Al-Mahra, and Hadramaut governorates will fall automatically. This will prevent Yemen's partition.
"[Thirdly], they should strike the Zionist entity. This is the crucial point. Drones, as well as ballistic and winged missiles, should be launched against the Eilat Port, Haifa, or Tel Aviv. And that is the point when the entire world will race to the negotiating table in order to produce a political settlement for Yemen."