The goal of the air and naval attacks on Houthi fighters' strongholds was to free up international shipping lines in the Red Sea, which are backed by Iran.
On Saturday, President Trump stated that the United States has launched massive military attacks against dozens of targets in Yemen under the control of the Houthi militia, an armed group backed by Iran.
As President Trump pursues a nuclear agreement with the Iranian regime, this was the first shot in what top US officials described as a fresh onslaught against the extremists and a powerful warning to Tehran.
To reopen the international trade channels in the Red Sea that the Houthis have blocked for months with their attacks, Mr. Trump ordered air and naval strikes that damaged radars, air defenses, missile and drone systems. The attack targeted a senior Houthi commander. Although the Biden administration launched multiple airstrikes against the Houthis, they were mainly unsuccessful in bringing peace to the area.
U.S. officials have stated that the attack was intended to send a message to Iran and is the most substantial military action taken by Mr. Trump during his second term thus far. Mr. Trump has left the door open to the prospect of military action if Iran rejects his efforts to negotiate a deal to stop it from getting nuclear weapons.
The president announced his decision to take decisive military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen in a message shared on Truth Social. "Anti-American and anti-aircraft and anti-drone piracy, violence, and terrorist attacks have been ongoing for some time."
Next, Mr. Trump turned his attention to the Iranian leaders in Tehran, urging them to immediately cease their support for the Houthi terrorists. In no world should you endanger the lives of Americans, their president—who has just been bestowed with one of the most massive mandates ever—or the world's shipping routes. The United States of America will ensure that you face full consequences if you do this.
U.S. officials have stated that attacks targeting the Houthis' underground stockpile might continue for weeks, with the intensity of the bombings increasing in response from the terrorists. In the past, American intelligence services have had a hard time tracing the Houthi military systems that the rebels manufacture in underground workshops and sneak into Yemen from Iran.
According to U.S. officials, some national security advisors are pushing for a more aggressive strategy that might cause the Houthis to lose control of a significant portion of the northern region of the country. Still, Trump has been hesitant to authorize such a plan out of concern for bringing America into a fight in the Middle East, something he campaigned against.
In light of Iran's weak air defenses following Israel's bombing campaign in October that destroyed vital military infrastructure, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been urging President Trump to authorize a joint U.S.-Israeli operation to destroy Iran's nuclear weapons facilities. Despite calls from Israeli and American conservatives to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, Mr. Trump has so far resisted, expressing his desire to avoid getting involved in a big conflict.
Houthi rebels have disrupted global trade through one of the world's busiest maritime routes by attacking over 100 merchant vessels and warships in the Red Sea with hundreds of missiles, drones, and explosive-laden speedboats since the Hamas-led assault on Israel in October 2023.
After Israel and Hamas struck a truce in Gaza in January, the Houthis—an Iranian-backed group that controls a major portion of northern Yemen—largely stopped launching strikes. The Houthis have threatened to increase their attacks after Israel cut off funding to Gaza earlier this month.
Trump is enraged by the group's recent attacks. They attempted to shoot down an F-16 fighter plane over the Red Sea using a surface-to-air missile, but their attempt was unsuccessful. On the very same day that Houthi terrorists asserted they shot down an American military MQ-9 Reaper drone, the drone went missing above the Red Sea.
"To all Houthi terrorists, your attacks must cease immediately; your time has come." As stated in the Truth Social message by Mr. Trump.
Sana, the capital of Yemen, and the surrounding districts were the first targets of the bombings, according to locals. These areas were considered to be strongholds of the Houthi leadership. Airstrikes in Yemen have killed nine individuals and injured nine more, according to the health ministry, as reported by the Houthi-run television news channel Al Masirah. It was not possible to confirm the deaths via other means.
United States officials stated that Saturday's strikes were a direct outcome of a series of meetings held by President Trump with senior national security advisors and other White House officials earlier this week. These individuals included State Secretary Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, and the president's national security adviser, Michael Waltz. On Friday, Mr. Trump gave his approval to the idea.
Attack planes from the United States Air Force and armed drones sent from nearby sites carried out the strikes, according to U.S. authorities. The aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman is now in the northern Red Sea.
U.S. and British armed forces launched multiple counterstrikes in response to attacks on commercial vessels while Biden was in office. For example, in reaction to the Houthi attacks on ships, the forces of the two nations launched a total of five significant combined strikes against the group between January and May of last year.
The United States Central Command has frequently announced military attacks against the Houthis; on Saturday, it carried them out alone.
Critical for international trade, the U.S.-led strikes have not stopped them from assaulting shipping channels that lead to the Suez Canal. Due to the lengthy detour across southern Africa, hundreds of ships have been compelled to take, which has increased expenditures. Even if the fighting in Gaza has stopped, websites of major container shipping companies reveal that their ships are still avoiding the Red Sea by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope.
To prevent the slaughter of a significant number of Houthi militants and commanders—which may escalate the regional conflict and potentially involve Iran—the Biden administration sought to weaken the Houthis' capacity to threaten military and commercial ships.
After Israel's devastating airstrikes last fall leveled Iran's air defenses and killed two of Iran's main regional proxies, Hezbollah and Hamas, fears of a wider regional conflict have significantly diminished. This has left Iran exposed to a potentially larger Israeli counterattack if it retaliates.
This has allowed President Trump greater room to launch his massive bombing campaign against the Houthis, which he may then use to send a message to the Iranian leadership if they refuse to engage in nuclear-related negotiations.
It is not apparent, however, how a fresh bombing campaign against the Houthis could be successful given the dismal performance of earlier military operations spearheaded by the United States. According to military authorities, these strikes will be carried out over several weeks and will target a wider range of Houthi locations. In his social media tweet, Mr. Trump failed to provide any details.
"The unrestrained Houthis just kept going," Mr. Trump stated, adding, "The Houthi attack on American vessels will not be tolerated." He further said that Joe Biden's answer was painfully poor. Until we accomplish our goal, we will employ overwhelming deadly force.
With their military skills refined over eight years of warfare against a Saudi-led coalition, the Houthis have enthusiastically welcomed the possibility of going to war with the US.
Since their 2014 assault on Sana, the capital of Yemen, the tribal Houthis have practically won a battle against the Saudi-led coalition that spent years attempting to defeat them. They now control a large portion of northern Yemen. Their philosophy is based on opposing Israel and the US, and they frequently make comparisons between the American-made bombs that were used on Yemen and those that were dropped on Israel and Gaza.
As a result of the Houthi rebels' threat to regional security, President Trump designated them as a "foreign terrorist organization" in an executive order he signed at the end of January. An already catastrophic humanitarian situation in the country will be exacerbated, according to critics.
The group, officially known as Ansar Allah, had its designation reinstated in the directive, which was issued towards the end of the first Trump administration. To help kickstart peace talks in Yemen's civil war, the Biden administration removed the designation soon after assuming office.
The Biden administration changed its stance last year in reaction to attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea, classifying the Houthis as a "specially designated global terrorist" group instead of a more serious category.
On Saturday, authorities in both the Middle East and Washington were preparing for a possible counterattack by the Houthis.
On January 22, the Houthis' spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam stated on social media that, notwithstanding the Gaza ceasefire, supporting the Palestinian cause would continue to be their first priority. In a statement, the Houthis promised to end their attacks on ships "upon the full implementation of all phases" of the truce deal.
On the other hand, the Houthis have threatened to repeat their attacks on US and British boats if those countries launch direct attacks on Yemen. Weapons experts have lately uncovered evidence that suggests the rebels may have obtained cutting-edge technology that enables their drones to fly farther and harder to detect.
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