Nearly two weeks ago, phase one of the deal between Israel and Hamas concluded, with Israel halting humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip several days after its completion. In response, on Friday, the Houthi leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, announced a "return to maritime operations against Israeli vessels" if aid is not allowed into Gaza within four days – meaning by Tuesday, March 11.
Since the completion of the first phase of the deal, intensive negotiations have been ongoing between the parties, with attempts to bridge the gaps between them, but at this stage it appears highly likely that fighting on the southern front is expected to resume. The latest Houthi threat refers to "only" maritime actions, but as the Houthis have declared in the past, if Israel resumes fighting in Gaza – they will resume attacking Israel. As a result, the Houthi threat to the country, which includes launching ballistic missiles, UAVs, and more – is back on the table.
Since the beginning of the war, there has been a new awareness in Israel and worldwide regarding the major terrorism financiers in the world, Qatar and Iran, but there is also one entity that manages to stay under the radar despite its support for the Houthis – Oman.
The Qatari game
In recent years, there has been a certain warming in relations between Oman and Israel.
In 2018, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made an official diplomatic visit to Oman, the first since 1996, where he met with then-Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said. This followed prolonged contact between the countries that began about 40 years earlier, mostly under the table.
In February 2023, Oman approved Israeli airlines to fly through its airspace, but canceled this approval with the outbreak of the current war. A few months before October 7, Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi referenced the possibility of his country establishing relations with Israel, saying it was open to this but conditioned it on the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Alongside the rapprochement with Israel, Oman maintains good and continuous relations with the Americans, with both countries maintaining security and intelligence cooperation. In 2022, US arms sales to Oman totaled about $3.5 billion (about 12.4 billion shekels).
The current Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, is considered a legitimate figure in the West and has even received official honors in Britain and Belgium (also in Austria and another honor in Britain, but these were before he was crowned Sultan).
Financial aid, weapons transfers, and connections with Iran
Parallel to its relations with the West, Oman plays a double game.
Since 2015, Oman has been providing the Houthis with a smuggling route for weapons and access to the international financial system. In 2017 and 2018, Burkan 2 ballistic missiles and UAVs were transferred to the Houthis through Oman, and in 2023, advanced military equipment was seized at the Oman-Yemen border, including support systems for UAVs and radar jamming devices, equipment that was reportedly intended for attacking ships in the Red Sea.
Economically, senior Houthi officials transfer funds, including US dollars, through banks in Oman, which have access to the international financial system.
Additionally, Oman provides a safe haven for senior Houthi officials, including Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam. These officials operate openly and unhindered from Oman. The Grand Mufti of Oman, Ahmed al-Khalili, even praised the Houthis, called Iran's missile attack on Israel in April last year "brave" and "a joyous matter," and expressed support for Hamas actions against Israel.
The connections between Oman and Iran highlight another problem, as official representatives of the ayatollah regime regularly visit Oman to meet with Houthi representatives. According to estimates, these meetings involve operational coordination between the Iranian octopus and one of its central arms, including the transfer of intelligence, targets, and more.
After the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Israel saw Oman as a partner in the fight against the "Shiite Crescent" and Iran's nuclear program. However, Israel faced some disappointment on this front, and according to documents leaked and published on WikiLeaks, former head of the Middle East Division, Yacov Hadas-Handelsman, described Oman as the most problematic country among Gulf states in its attitude toward Iran.
Alongside its relations with the Americans, Oman has economic interests with Iran. The latter is much stronger than Oman, and the two have shared economic interests, as they jointly control the Strait of Hormuz, through which more than 40% of global oil passes. In May 2023, Sultan Haitham visited Tehran, two days after Oman mediated a prisoner exchange deal between Iran and Belgium. Last April, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian visited the Omani capital, Muscat.
The Sultanate claims that they play an important role in American policy toward Tehran, including hosting the talks that led to the nuclear agreement during the Obama administration and mediating between the Biden administration and Iran in 2023. Since October 7, Muscat has served as a mediator maintaining contact with both sides and passing messages between them.
The Omanis are playing the Qatari game, just with a lower profile.
It is time to pick a side
For years, the White House has treated Oman with infuriating leniency and accepted its narrative that it hosts Houthi leaders to promote a solution to the civil war in Yemen.
Additionally, Houthi aggression in the Red Sea has severely damaged trade in the region for an extended period and has cost the Americans a significant amount of money, both directly and indirectly, including dedicating considerable military expenditures to deal with the threat.
Oman also allows Russian tankers to unload oil at its ports to sell cheaply to India, despite American sanctions on the Russians following the invasion of Ukraine.
The reintroduction of the Houthis to the list of terrorist organizations by the Trump administration may raise hopes for marking a more aggressive line against Omani slipperiness and expelling their leaders from its territory, but it should be remembered that even during his first term, the Houthis were defined as such and security cooperation with Oman continued as usual. Moreover, in 2022, the American president engaged with the Sultanate of Oman in a real estate deal worth about $4 billion (about 14.2 billion shekels).
