U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday explicitly linked Yemen’s Houthi rebel operations to the group’s main benefactor Iran, warning Tehran that it would “suffer the consequences” to further attack the group.
Trump’s comments on his truth social networking escalated his administration’s new airstrike campaign against the rebels, killing only at least 53 people this weekend. U.S. officials said the strikes were targeted at more than 40 targets and planned air strikes in the coming days. Officials spoke on anonymously to discuss details of the military operation.
Meanwhile, Iranians continue to weigh in on how to respond to a letter Trump sent to them last week, trying to start negotiations on Tehran’s rapidly growing nuclear program.
Following the strike, Houthi supporters gathered in several cities on Monday, announcing aid to the Gaza Strip in the war against Hamas, proclaiming retaliation against the United States and Israel. Huthis’s al-masirah satellite news channel made young boys live, and they chanted the group’s slogan: “God is the greatest; death to the United States; death to Israel; curse the Jews; win Islam.”
“Yemen’s position is an irreversible position (about Gaza), so please do whatever you (Americans) want because we are men, and don’t be afraid of God except God,” said Mohammed Ali Al-Houthi, who demonstrated in Sanaa, the capital held by Yemeni rebels.
UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Monday that the UN called for a halt of all military activities in Yemen and the Red Sea, urging “maximum restraint” and warning that “any additional escalation could exacerbate regional tensions.”
Trump connects Iran with the Hussi
Trump described Houthis as a “sinniest thug and thug,” warning that any attacks from the group would encounter “a huge force and there is no guarantee that such force would stop there.”
“Iran has played the ‘innocent victim’ of rogue terrorists who lost control, but they did not lose control,” Trump said in his post. “They are deciding every move, giving them weapons, giving them money and highly refined military equipment, and even so-called ‘intellectual power.'”
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In a clear departure from the previous administration, Trump gave us the orders of the Central Committee to power an offensive strike against Hottis where he saw fit.
The Biden administration demanded that the White House approve a similar offensive strike over the weekend. It does allow U.S. troops to launch defensive attacks, including taking out weapons that seem to be ready to fire.
Lieutenant General Alex Grynkewich, director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that delegating power to regional commanders, “allowing us to reach the speed of operations, we can see the opportunities we see on the battlefield in order to continue to put pressure on Hossis.” He added that this also allows the United States to achieve a broader goal.
U.S. officials said Trump made the decision last week.
Grynkewich said the weekend strike targeted headquarters locations and drone sites, and the Pentagon identified as the “key leader” of the Houthis drone program at the time.
The Pentagon said there was no evidence that any civilians were killed in the attack.
Iran warns us of “reckless” words
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations strongly condemned Trump’s recent remarks to the Islamic Republic on Monday, saying Trump and U.S. officials are making “reckless and provocative statements” and threatening retaliation if those words can be taken.
In a letter to the UN Security Council, Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said his country would “defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity and national interests under international law in order to violate any hostilities.”
It is not clear what triggered Trump’s position. However, the head of the Iranian paramilitary Revolutionary Guard attempted to distinguish Hushi’s actions from those in Tehran this weekend. Hushis also launched drones and missiles targeting the Red Sea USS Harry Truman Airlines, although no one arrived at the ship as the area continued to operate.
“From this moment, every shot that Hotis fires will be examined, because it is Iran’s weapons and the shooting fired by the leadership, and Iran will take responsibility and suffer the consequences that will be terrible!” Trump added.
From November 2023 to January this year, the Houthi rebels attacked 100 merchant ships with missiles and drones, sinking two ships and killing four sailors. The campaign also greatly increased Hushis’ popularity in the wider Arab world, suppressed public criticism of human rights violations, and suppressed repression of dissent and aid workers.
Hottis claimed that although U.S. officials did not immediately acknowledge them, there were other U.S. air strikes overnight.
World Food Program Warehouse attacked by Husseth
In Sada, in the stronghold of Hotis, rebels raided the warehouse run by the World Food Program. A member of Yemen’s exile government first reported that after the U.S. air strike, Huthis took supplies from the facility without WFP’s permission. The United Nations Bureau later acknowledged Houthis’s actions against the Associated Press.
“WFP regrets the de facto authorities’ decision to seize some of the goods,” it said. “These goods are intended to be the most vulnerable food-insecurity households. Only WFP and its partners have the right to allocate them and ensure they reach the intended recipients.”
Yemen, Yemen has been famine for many years since Houthis occupied Sanaa in 2014. But the United Nations in February suspended its operations in Sada on security issues as it detained dozens of UN workers and others in recent months. A day later, WFP announced that one of its employees died while being imprisoned by Houthis.
Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor and Tara Copp in Washington, and Edith M. Lederer and Farnoush Amiri of the United Nations contributed to the report.
& Copy 2025 Canadian Press
