Egypt Daily News – The Houthis issued a statement announcing a special military operation targeting the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman with 18 missiles and drones. The attack was carried out in response to the U.S. aggression, which struck several Yemeni provinces with more than 47 air raids, resulting in dozens of martyrs and injured civilians.
At the same time, the White House said on Sunday that U.S. strikes had killed several Houthi leaders in Yemen. National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told ABC News that the airstrikes specifically targeted and eliminated multiple Houthi leaders. In another statement to Fox News, he added, “We struck them with overwhelming force and warned Iran that enough is enough.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told CBS News that U.S. strikes on Yemen will continue until the Houthis’ ability to attack global shipping and the U.S. Navy is completely eliminated.
He added that there is no discussion about U.S. ground raids in Yemen, saying, “I don’t think there is a need for that at the moment.” He also noted that “it is impossible for the Houthis to have the capability to attack global shipping without support from Iran.”
While Trump called on Tehran to “immediately” stop its support for the Houthis, Iran vowed retaliation if President Trump followed through on his threat to hold it responsible for the actions of the Houthi group in Yemen.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi affirmed that Washington has no right to “dictate” the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic.
Revolutionary Guard Commander Major General Hossein Salami vowed that Iran would respond to any attack against it. His statement came on Sunday following President Trump’s warning for Iran to stop supporting the Houthis in Yemen.
In remarks broadcast on state television, Salami stated, “Iran will not start a war, but if threatened, it will respond appropriately, decisively, and firmly.”
He described Ansar Allah as “a movement representing the Yemeni people,” emphasizing that it “makes its own strategic decisions independently.”
Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday that Minister Sergey Lavrov told his U.S. counterpart Marco Rubio in a phone call on Saturday that Washington must refrain from “using force” in Yemen and instead initiate a “political dialogue to find a settlement that prevents further bloodshed.”
The U.S. airstrikes are the first on Yemen since Trump took office in January, following Houthi threats to resume attacks on Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, which they have been carrying out in recent months in response to the war in Gaza.
Trump confirmed that the strikes against the Houthis were prompted by their threats to maritime trade.
The spokesperson for the Houthi-run Ministry of Health, Anis Al-Asbahi, stated on Platform X on Sunday morning that the “initial toll of the American aggression targeting civilian and residential areas in Sana’a, Saada, Al-Bayda, and Rada’a” has reached “31 martyrs and 101 injured, most of them women and children.”
He added that this toll is “preliminary, and the search for victims is still ongoing.”
A photographer for Agence France-Presse in Sana’a reported hearing three explosions and seeing smoke rising from a residential area in the north of the Houthi-controlled capital since 2014. Security forces quickly cordoned off the area.
The Houthi-affiliated Al-Masirah TV channel reported on Saturday night that an “American-British attack” targeted a residential area in the Shu’aub district in northern Sana’a, while another strike hit Saada, the Houthis’ stronghold in the north.
The channel broadcast footage of what it described as “the American aggression crime in the Qahza area north of Saada,” showing medics transporting wounded individuals—some with visible burns—into a hospital room, while several bodies lay in another part of the room.
On Saturday, Trump announced the launch of a “decisive and strong” military operation against the Houthis.
Posting on his Truth Social platform, he stated, “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we achieve our goal,” accusing the Houthis of threatening maritime navigation in the Red Sea.
Houthis Vow Retaliation
The Houthis vowed to retaliate against the U.S. after the large-scale airstrikes on Yemen’s capital. Spokesperson Mohammed Al-Bukhaiti told the BBC that they would attack American targets “whenever possible,” insisting that the group acts independently of Iran.
Al-Masirah TV cited the Houthis’ political office as stating, “The aggression will not go unanswered, and our armed forces are fully prepared to escalate in response.”
According to Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, the Houthis have “attacked U.S. warships 174 times and commercial vessels 145 times since 2023.”
Following the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on ships passing through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, claiming their actions were in solidarity with Palestinians.
These attacks have disrupted the vital maritime corridor, through which about 12% of global shipping passes, forcing many companies to seek costly alternative routes.
Supported by the UK, the U.S. has bombed targets in Yemen multiple times, including under the previous administration of President Joe Biden. Israel has also conducted separate strikes against the Houthis.
After pausing their attacks following a Gaza ceasefire agreement in January, the Houthis announced on March 11 the “resumption of the ban” on Israeli-linked ships passing near Yemen, citing Israel’s obstruction of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Trump’s statement did not mention the Gaza conflict but focused on previous Houthi attacks on U.S. Navy and coalition warships, as well as commercial vessels.
He warned, “To all the Houthi terrorists, your time is up. Your attacks must stop, starting today. If you do not comply, hell will rain down on you like never before!”
On Truth Social, he added, “Do not threaten the American people, its president… or global shipping lanes. If you do, beware, because America will hold you fully accountable—no more freebies.”
Hamas condemned the strikes on Sana’a “in the strongest terms,” calling them “a blatant violation of international law and an attack on the sovereignty and stability of Yemen.”
Earlier this month, the U.S. reclassified the Houthis as a “Foreign Terrorist Organization” and banned any American dealings with them.
The Houthis seized Sana’a in 2014 and were on the verge of taking control of most of Yemen before a Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognized government.
Fighting had largely subsided since a 2022 ceasefire, but the anticipated peace process stalled as the Houthis escalated attacks on Israel and shipping routes linked to it.
