Abdelmalek al-Houthi, Yemen's strongman with close ties to Iran, criticized Morocco's official stance on the Israeli aggression in Gaza. However, he praised the «popular Moroccan movement» in solidarity with the Palestinians, noting that «it is spreading across many Moroccan cities». This praise was surprising, given that he had just condemned the passivity of the Arab peoples regarding the Israeli aggression in Gaza. In his speech, Al-Houthi specifically mentioned Morocco by name but refrained from criticizing other Arab countries with diplomatic ties to Tel Aviv, such as Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Jordan. He also did not mention Saudi Arabia. Instead, the Houthi leader simply questioned: «Where are the positions of Arab and Islamic countries?»
