Trump said Houthi’s leaders told his administration they didn’t want to fight any more.
President Donald Trump announced on May 6 that he would stop the strike targeting Yemeni Houtis, saying the rebel movement was eventually tired of a year and a half Red Sea standoff.
Speaking to reporters when he hosted newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said he “announced to us that at least they didn’t want to fight anymore.”
“They just don’t want to fight, we respect that. They stopped the bombing and they surrendered,” Trump said.
Houthis, also known as Ansal Allah, is the Zaidi Shian movement, which escaped the internationally recognized government from Yemen’s capital Sanaa in 2014 and currently controls the region, which includes around 80% of the country’s 32 million population.
For years, the Houtis was backed by the US-backed Arab Gulf countries and opposed a Saudi-led coalition, which led a military campaign to restore control of the country to an internationally recognized government.
Yemen’s internal conflict has declined in recent years, with the Houthis holding their power almost unharmed.
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After Hamas attacked in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel launched a retaliatory military campaign across the Gaza Strip, the Houtis turned its attention and began firing missiles and attack drones on ships passing through Israeli and the Middle Eastern waterways.
Houthis claimed cell on a Palestinian cause and would continue these attacks until Israel ends its Gaza campaign.
The US military was soon called to the Middle Eastern waterways to help protect international shipping vehicles.
By January last year, the Biden administration had ordered the US military to launch an offensive strike through Yemen, managed by Hooty.
The Houthi attacks halted after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire agreement in January this year.
The US military tapered its strike campaign against Yemen.
In March, the Gaza ceasefire was shattered, and the Housis threatened to renew the attack.
Around the same time, the US government officially redesignated the Houthis on March 15 by launching waves of missiles and aircraft to attack targets across Yemen, prepping new Houthi attacks.
This is a developing story and will be updated with additional details.
