Since the Yemeni government’s first anti-Houthi military campaign in mid-2004, the authorities in Sanaa have mounted an extensive media war against the group, sometimes accusing its members of claiming prophethood for their leader, while at other times accusing them of being Iranian agents carrying orders from Tehran to destabilize security in the southwestern corner of Arabia. Between 2004 and 2010, the conflict between Yemen’s military and Houthi rebels was characterized by periodic low-level fighting which escalated into six major violent bouts.