President Donald Trump declared Tuesday that the United States will stop immediately bombing Yemen’s Houthi rebels, saying the Iran-aligned faction has agreed to desist from attacking critical Middle Eastern shipping lanes.
Speaking in the Oval Office during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump said the Houthis have made it clear they no longer want war.
They told us, ‘Please stop bombing us, and we will not fire at your ships,'” Trump declared. “I’m going to take them at their word, and the bombing stops immediately.”
There has been no official reaction from the Houthis yet.
Since March 15, the US military has conducted more than 1,000 strikes under Operation Rough Rider, striking Houthi infrastructure and killing hundreds of fighters and senior leaders, according to reports. The campaign accelerated after the Houthis began attacking Israeli-linked ships in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways, following Israel’s Gaza offensive that started after the October 7 Hamas attack.
Tensions were heightened further this week when a Houthi missile hit close to Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, leading Israeli airstrikes against Hodeidah port and Sanaa’s main airport.
During former President Joe Biden, the US and the UK had previously coordinated strikes to keep the Red Sea trade route critical to 15% of world shipping open.
Trump, in office since January, dramatically escalated US military activity in Yemen. But the air war was criticized by human rights groups, especially after an April 28 bombing of a migrant facility in Yemen killed 68 people, one of the deadliest such attacks in the war.
Trump’s choice to suspend the airstrikes may signal a turning point for regional stability, although there are doubts that the Houthis will keep their pledge.
