U.S. President Donald Trump says he has ordered airstrikes against Iran-backed rebels in Yemen, and issued a warning to Tehran.
Here’s why.
Threat to global shipping
The conflict began in October 2023, during the war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza. The Houthi rebels initiated attacks on military and commercial ships along one of the world’s most crucial shipping routes.
The Houthi rebels claimed they were aiming at ships in the Red Sea associated with Israel, the United States, or the U.K. as an act of solidarity with Palestinians. However, many of the targeted vessels had no clear connection to the ongoing conflict.
During their attacks, the Houthis utilized missiles and drones to target more than 100 merchant ships. This resulted in the sinking of two vessels and the tragic deaths of four sailors. The attacks continued until a ceasefire was implemented in Gaza in mid-January, halting further hostilities. Some missiles and drones were intercepted, and others failed to hit their intended targets, including Western military ships.
The attacks paused during the ceasefire, but the Houthis on Wednesday said they would resume against “any Israeli vessel” after Israel cut off all aid supplies to Gaza to pressure Hamas during talks on extending their truce. The rebels said the warning also affects the Gulf of Aden, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Arabian Sea.
No Houthi attacks have been reported since then.
“These relentless assaults have cost the U.S. and World Economy many BILLIONS of Dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk,” Trump said Saturday while announcing the airstrikes in a social media post.
Threat to the U.S.
The earlier Houthi campaign saw U.S. and other Western warships repeatedly targeted, sparking the most serious combat the U.S. Navy had seen since World War II.
The United States under the Biden administration, as well as Israel and Britain, previously struck Houthi-held areas in Yemen. But a U.S. official said Saturday’s operation was conducted solely by the U.S.
The USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group, which includes the carrier, three Navy destroyers and one cruiser, are in the Red Sea and were part of Saturday’s mission. The USS Georgia cruise missile submarine has also been operating in the region.
Trump said the strikes were to “protect American shipping, air, and naval assets, and to restore Navigational Freedom.”
The focus on the Houthis and their attacks have raised their profile as they face economic and other pressures at home amid Yemen’s decadelong stalemated war, which has torn apart the Arab world’s poorest nation.
Pressure on Iran
Saturday’s strikes also were meant to pressure Iran, which has backed the Houthis just as it has supported Hamas and other proxies in the Middle East.
Trump vowed to hold Iran “fully accountable” for the Houthis’ actions.
The State Department earlier this month reinstated the “foreign terrorist organization” designation for the Houthis, which carries sanctions and penalties for anyone providing “material support” for the group.
The Trump administration also has been pressing Iran to restart bilateral talks on Iran’s advancing nuclear weapons program, with Trump writing a letter to the country’s supreme leader. Trump, who unilaterally withdrew America from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, has said he will not allow the program to become operational.
Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is peaceful. However, its officials increasingly threaten to pursue a nuclear weapon.
Trump has also levied new sanctions on Iran as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign against the country and has suggested that military action remains a possibility, while emphasizing he still believes a new nuclear deal can be reached.
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Associated Press writer Lolita C. Baldor in Washington contributed.
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