Bangladesh, Feb. 24 -- For years, Washington viewed the Houthis as a contained problem – a militant force entrenched in Yemens rugged mountains and along its Red Sea coastline, dangerous but geographically limited. That assumption is now dangerously outdated. What we are witnessing is not merely an embattled insurgency fighting for survival at home. The Houthis have evolved into a transregional actor, exporting instability beyond Yemens borders and embedding themselves within broader militant ecosystems. Their growing collaboration with Somalias Al Shabaab signals a strategic shift: the battlefield is expanding southward into East Africa that directly threatens US interests, allied commerce, and regional stability.

This is not acci...