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Trump ordered a wave of airstrikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen on Sunday in retaliation for attacks on international shipping. The airstrikes killed 53 people in Yemen, including children.
US President Donald Trump overseeing airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. (White House)
The White House on Sunday (local time) shared new pictures of US President Donald Trump overseeing a wave of new airstrikes on Yemen-based Houthis, after the Commander-in-Chief vowed “overwhelming lethal force” against the Iran-backed group for attacking global shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
Trump was dressed in golfing attire, wearing a large black headset and sporting a red MAGA hat with his own autograph emblazoned on it in the photo. He was seen observing the strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen on a computer.
“President Trump is taking action against the Houthis to defend US shipping assets and deter terrorist threats. For too long American economic & national threats have been under assault by the Houthis. Not under this presidency,” the White House said in the caption.
Trump ordered a series of deadly airstrikes in Houthi-held areas in Yemen in retaliation for attacks on global shipping by the group in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war last year. The attacks killed 53 people in Yemen, including five children, while wounding 98 others, according to the Houthi health ministry.
‘Your Time Is Up’: Trump’s Warning To Houthis
“YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!” Trump warned the Houthis on his Truth Social platform, while telling Iran to cease support or the US would hold it “fully accountable”.
The Houthis reported explosions in their territory on Saturday evening, in Sanaa and the northern province of Saada, the rebels’ stronghold on the border with Saudi Arabia. In his post, Trump accused the Houthis of waging an “unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence and terrorism against American, and other ships, aircraft, and drones”, adding that his predecessor Joe Biden’s response was “pathetically weak”.
The US Central Command shared some visuals of the precision airstrikes against Houthi targets on late Sunday, which are expected to continue over the week. The airstrikes were one of the most extensive attacks against the Houthis since the war in Gaza began in October 2023.
“We’re not going to have these people controlling which ships can go through and which ones cannot. And so your question is, how long will this go on? It will go on until they no longer have the capability to do that,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told CBS News.
Trump’s national security adviser, Michael Waltz, said the strikes targeted “multiple Houthi leaders and took them out”, while several Houthi facilities were destroyed. The Houthis’ political bureau has said the rebels will respond to the US strikes and “meet escalation with escalation”.
Houthis Claim Attack On US Carrier Group
Following the strikes, the Houthi rebels claimed they had attacked US aircraft, USS Harry Truman and its accompanying warships, by launching 18 missiles and a drone. They also claimed to have thwarted a “hostile attack by the enemy”, forcing its warplanes to return to their launching point.
There has been no response from the US Central Command on the Houthis’ latest claims.
The Houthis, an Iran-backed armed group that took control of most of Yemen in the last decade, have launched over 100 attacks targeting shipping since November 2023, disrupting global commerce and prompting firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa.
The Houthis have managed to sink two vessels and kill four sailors during their campaign targeting military and civilian ships after the Gaza war began. However, they have not launched any attacks since a ceasefire was announced in Gaza on January 19.
However, the Houthis said on Tuesday that they would renew attacks against Israeli vessels after Israel cut off the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza this month, marking the first US strike against the group under the second Trump administration.
(with inputs from agencies)
- Location :
Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
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