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Straits Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
U.S. bombing dents but doesn't destroy Houthi threat in Yemen
FILE PHOTO: A police trooper walks on the rubble of a building destroyed by U.S. air strikes in Sanaa, Yemen April 27, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah/File Photo WASHINGTON - A nearly two-month-long U.S. bombing campaign in Yemen dealt heavy damage to the Iran-aligned Houthis but U.S. officials and experts caution that the group is expected to remain a vexing adversary despite a ceasefire announced on Tuesday by Washington. President Donald Trump said U.S. forces will stop bombing the Houthis because they had agreed to stop attacking crucial shipping lanes under a deal that Oman said it mediated. While the chief Houthi negotiator confirmed the ceasefire to Reuters, he said it did not extend to close U.S. ally Israel and he did not rule out attacks on Israel-linked vessels or targets. The group says it is acting in solidarity with Gaza's Palestinians. In March, Trump ordered the Pentagon to intensify strikes against the Houthis, in an operation known as Rough Rider. Since then, the U.S. military says it has struck more than 1,000 targets and says it has killed hundreds of the group's fighters along with some military leaders. But after weeks of intensive U.S. strikes, the Houthis, who have controlled most of Yemen for nearly a decade, were still able to strike Israel's Ben-Gurion Airport on Sunday, in a dramatic illustration of their resilience. "(This operation shows) the Houthis can survive pretty much any bombing campaign," said one U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. The group had carried out over 100 attacks on shipping lanes since Israel's war with Hamas began in October 2023. Under the agreement, Oman said in its statement, neither the U.S. nor the Houthis would target the other, including U.S. vessels in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait. The Pentagon was notified as early as Monday evening that a ceasefire was possible, a second U.S. official told Reuters. The Houthis endured nearly a decade of heavy strikes launched by a Saudi-led military coalition, but were able to rebuild to the point where they could threaten the U.S. Navy and Israel. U.S. bombings have killed a significant number of mid-tier Houthi fighters who trained lower-level forces, a third U.S. official said, adding "their will to continue has been dramatically reduced." Michael Knights, an expert on Yemen at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think-tank, said the group could recover if weaponry continues to flow from its ally Iran. "As long as the Houthis maintain a line of resupply to Iran and the Iranians continue to provide it, then it's not going to have any lasting effect," Knights told Reuters. "They can recover." DEPLETED BUT STILL POTENT Under Joe Biden's administration, the United States and Britain retaliated with airstrikes on Houthi targets in an effort to keep open the Red Sea trading route - the path for about 15% of global shipping traffic. Trump decided to intensify air strikes against the Houthis. As of last month, ballistic missile launches by the Houthis dropped by 69% while drone attacks were down by more than 50% since the start of the campaign, according to the U.S. military. But the group's attack on Israel on Sunday showed it can still stir chaos and escalate tensions in the region. Israel retaliated by launching airstrikes on Yemen's Hodeidah port and its main airport in Sanaa. Last week, a U.S. F-18 jet and its tow tractor fell overboard from an aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. While the event is still under investigation, officials told Reuters the Harry S. Truman carrier had to make a sharp turn because of a Houthi attack in the region. A second F-18 went off the side of the carrier into the sea on Tuesday. The Houthi campaign has also been expensive for the U.S. military. The cost of the operation will likely be measured in the billions of dollars, according to a U.S. official. The Houthis have also shot down seven U.S. MQ-9 drones -- each worth tens of millions of dollars -- in or around Yemen since Trump took office. "What this shows is that the Houthis still have significant capabilities," the first official said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Wall Street Journal
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Trump Declares Truce With Houthis but Israel Still at Risk
May 7, 2025 5:30 am ET You may also like Close Created with sketchtool. Up Next Close Created with sketchtool. Embed code copied to clipboard Copy Link Copy Embed Facebook Twitter Close Created with sketchtool. Your browser does not support HTML5 video. 0:00 Play Created with sketchtool. Paused Mute Created with sketchtool. 0:00 / 1:21 Share Created with sketchtool. Closed Captions Active Created with sketchtool. Fullscreen Inactive Created with sketchtool. Trump Announces Truce With Houthis: 'They Don't Want to Fight Anymore' Play video: Trump Announces Truce With Houthis: 'They Don't Want to Fight Anymore' Keep hovering to play President Trump said that the U.S. would suspend airstrikes against the Houthis, the militant group in Yemen targeting merchant vessels in the Red Sea. Photo: Khaled Abdullah/Reuters WASHINGTON—When President Trump began his military campaign against Houthi militants in mid-March, he vowed to pull out all the stops to end the militants' attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea and nearby waters. 'It isn't even a fair fight, and never will be. They will be completely annihilated,' Trump declared on social media in the first week of the operation.
Straits Times
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Oman says it mediated ceasefire between US, Yemen's Houthis
FILE PHOTO: A police trooper walks on the rubble of a building destroyed by U.S. air strikes in Sanaa, Yemen April 27, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah/File Photo Oman says it mediated ceasefire between US, Yemen's Houthis CAIRO - Oman said it mediated a ceasefire deal between Yemen's Houthis and the U.S., marking a major shift in the Iran-aligned group's policy since the start of Israel's war in Gaza in October 2023. Neither side will target the other, including U.S. vessels in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, Oman said in its statement. The statement made no mention of the Houthi attacks on Israel. Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. will stop bombing the Houthis, saying the group had agreed to stop interrupting important shipping lanes in the Middle East. The Yemeni group started attacking shipping lanes after the war in Gaza started saying it is in support of Palestinians. In March, Trump launched Washington's biggest military operation under his administration against the Houthis during which hundreds of Yemenis were killed. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Japan Today
28-04-2025
- Business
- Japan Today
U.S. sanctions target deliveries of oil and gas to Houthis
Protesters, predominantly supporters of the Houthi movement, hold up their weapons as they rally to demonstrate solidarity with Palestinians, vowing that U.S. airstrikes would not deter their support, in Sanaa, Yemen April 25, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah The U.S. imposed sanctions on Monday on three vessels and their owners for delivering oil and gas products to Yemen's Houthis, as Washington piled pressure on the Iran-backed rebels over their attacks on Red Sea shipping. The sanctions targeted Marshall Islands-registered Zaas Shipping & Trading Co and Great Success Shipping Co, and Mauritius-registered Bagsak Shipping Co and the cargo vessels they used to deliver oil and gas products to the Houthi-controlled port of Ras Isa, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement. "Today's action underscores our commitment to disrupt the Houthis' efforts to fund their dangerous and destabilizing attacks in the region," Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Michael Faulkender said. The sanctions came hours after Houthi-controlled television said a U.S. airstrike killed 68 people at a detention center for African migrants in Yemen. In March, the U.S. designated the Houthis as a "Foreign Terrorist Organization," accusing the group of threatening the security of American civilians and personnel in the Middle East as well as partners in the region and global maritime trade. The attacks on ships, which the Houthis say are in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, have disrupted global commerce, stoked fears of inflation and deepened concern about the fallout from the Israel-Hamas war. The group has controlled the most populous parts of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, since it ousted the government in 2014. "The United States is committed to disrupting the Houthis' illicit revenue generation, financial facilitators, and suppliers as part of our whole-of-government approach to eliminating threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea," State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Straits Times
28-04-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
US sanctions target deliveries of oil and gas to Houthis
Protesters, predominantly supporters of the Houthi movement, hold up their weapons as they rally to demonstrate solidarity with Palestinians, vowing that U.S. airstrikes would not deter their support, in Sanaa, Yemen April 25, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah US sanctions target deliveries of oil and gas to Houthis WASHINGTON - The U.S. imposed sanctions on Monday on three vessels and their owners for delivering oil and gas products to Yemen's Houthis, as Washington piled pressure on the Iran-backed rebels over their attacks on Red Sea shipping. The sanctions targeted Marshall Islands-registered Zaas Shipping & Trading Co and Great Success Shipping Co, and Mauritius-registered Bagsak Shipping Co and the cargo vessels they used to deliver oil and gas products to the Houthi-controlled port of Ras Isa, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement. "Today's action underscores our commitment to disrupt the Houthis' efforts to fund their dangerous and destabilizing attacks in the region," Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Michael Faulkender said. The sanctions came hours after Houthi-controlled television said a U.S. airstrike killed 68 people at a detention center for African migrants in Yemen. In March, the U.S. designated the Houthis as a "Foreign Terrorist Organization," accusing the group of threatening the security of American civilians and personnel in the Middle East as well as partners in the region and global maritime trade. The attacks on ships, which the Houthis say are in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, have disrupted global commerce, stoked fears of inflation and deepened concern about the fallout from the Israel-Hamas war. The group has controlled the most populous parts of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, since it ousted the government in 2014. "The United States is committed to disrupting the Houthis' illicit revenue generation, financial facilitators, and suppliers as part of our whole-of-government approach to eliminating threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea," State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
