At least 53 people died in the US attack
The United States has stepped up operations against Yemen's Houthis, who have been attacking ships in the Red Sea. The US Central Command said on Monday that its forces attacked various positions of the Houthi rebel group in Al Jouf and Hudaydah areas.
53 people were killed in the attack carried out by the US on Sunday and Monday. Anish al-Asbahi, a spokesman for the Houthi-run health ministry, said on social media X that "53 people died, including five children and two women." According to him, 98 people were injured.
The US has claimed that some key Houthi leaders were killed in the attack. But the Houthi group has not confirmed anything about this. US national security adviser Michael Waltz told ABC News that the US attack "targeted many Houthi leaders". "We hit them with excessive force and gave a stern warning to Iran that it was too much," he said. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned that the US will continue operations until the Houthi attacks stop.
Trump says that he had to start action against the Houthis because of the attack on the ship in the Red Sea. "The Houthis have launched a missile at the American plane with the financial support of Iran. Targeting our military and allies," Trump wrote on his social network, Truth Social. Trump says that the Houthi's "robbery, violence and terrorism have cost billions of dollars and put lives at risk."
The Houthi group, which began targeting shipping through the Red Sea in response to the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, said it would respond to the US attack. The Houthis reported that a series of explosions occurred on Saturday evening in Sana'a and the northern province of Saada, which is the stronghold of the Houthi rebels. Their stronghold is located in the border region of Saudi Arabia.
The Iran-backed Houthis have taken control of Sana'a and Yemen's north-west region. But this is not Yemen's internationally recognized government. In a statement released by the Houthi group, the attack targeting residential areas in Yemen's capital Sana'a has been blamed on America and Britain.
Britain, which was not involved in Saturday's Houthi-targeted attack, had provided regular refueling assistance to the US. Trump has also warned that the Houthi rebels will destroy the Red Sea without stopping their terror. Likewise, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned Iran not to provide financial support to the Houthis.
The Houthi group has responded that the US attack will not diminish its support for the Palestinians. It will definitely be answered. "Our armed forces in Yemen are ready to respond to this aggression," Houthi said. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has warned that the US government has no authority to dictate Iranian foreign policy. "Stop supporting Israeli genocide and terrorism," he wrote on social network X on Sunday, "Stop killing the Yemeni people." Allegation that they are only targeting ships belonging to Israel, US or UK is false Huthi says that the story has broken. Since November 2023, the Houthis have attacked dozens of commercial ships and small boats in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with the help of missiles and drones. During this period, Houthis have sunk two ships and captured another ship and killed four crew members.
Major shipping companies have been forced to use an alternative route to the Red Sea due to Houthi terror. About 15 percent of the seaborne trade globally is through the Red Sea. But after the Houthi attack, shipping companies have started using longer routes around southern Africa.
US President Trump has said that it has been more than a year since the US flag carrier sailed safely through the Suez Canal en route to the Red Sea. Similarly, he said, it has been four months since the American warship started operating between East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The Suez Canal is the shortest sea route between Asia and Europe. This route is important for the transportation of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Directly addressing the Houthis, Trump wrote on social media, "Hell will rain down on you like you have never seen before." But the Houthis responded that the American warning would not reduce the support for the Palestinians. "This aggression will not go unanswered and our Yemeni armed forces are ready to respond," the group said.
Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Saturday. During that time, Rubio also discussed military operations against the Houthis. "The continued attacks by the Houthis on American military and commercial shipping in the Red Sea cannot be tolerated," Rubio said. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said that "all parties should engage in political dialogue to immediately stop the use of force and find a solution to stop further bloodshed," according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
According to the US Congress, from November 2023 to October 2024, the Houthis carried out 190 attacks in the Red Sea. Earlier, Britain and the US launched joint naval and air strikes against the Houthis. Israel has also targeted Houthi-linked areas in separate attacks.
Previously, US President Trump warned Iran to stop supporting the Houthis. "If it doesn't, Washington will hold Tehran fully accountable, and we won't be nice to that," he said. Trump also accused the previous White House administration, led by Joe Biden, of being "pathetically weak" and allowing the "out-of-control Houthis" to continue their terror.
Who is Huthi?
Hussein al-Houthi, a minority Zaidi (under Shia Muslim) sect in the north-western part of Yemen, founded 'Ansar Allah' in the 1990s. Ansar Allah, a Yemeni armed political and rebel group, fought for the independence of its region in northern Yemen under the leadership of Hussein. But after Hussain was killed during the war in 2004, Ansar Allah was renamed as 'Houthi'. The current leader of this group is Hussein's brother Abdul Malik al-Houthi.
Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict in October 2023, Yemen's Houthi rebels have been aggressive towards Israel and its close allies, including the United States and the UK. Since then, the Houthis have been repeatedly attacking cargo ships passing through the Suez Canal. But on November 14, for the first time, the leader of the Houthi group, Abdul, announced that the Israeli ships passing through the Red Sea would be intercepted. After that, on November 19, the Houthis captured the Israeli-owned cargo ship Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea through a military attack. At that time, 22 people were also taken hostage.
The Houthis then began to launch continuous drone and missile attacks on ships sailing to American and Israeli destinations in particular. Houthi says that if Israel stops humanitarian supplies such as food and medicine to Gaza, they will also stop all Israeli, American and British ships passing through the Red Sea.
