President Donald Trump announced that he had ordered the US army to take “decisive and powerful military measures” against the hutis in Yemen.
“They have fought a relentless campaign of piracy, violence and terrorism against Americans and others, ships, airplanes and drones,” Trump wrote in Truth Social. “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our goal.”
An American official confirmed that American and naval forces hit dozens of huti objectives, including missiles, radars and drone and air defense systems. When describing the operation as the first phase of military action against the hutis, the official said that the strikes also sent a strong warning to Iran.
This marks the largest and most significant military action of Trump's second mandate.
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The strikes were carried out using combat aircraft of Aviones Harry S. Truman, which is placed in the Red North Sea, as well as the air force attack aircraft and the armed drones launched from regional bases, according to a source familiar with the plan.
Trump approved the operation on Friday.
The decision followed a series of High Level Meetings of the White House with Trump and its senior national security officials, including vice president JD Vance, Secretary of State Framework Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Michael E. Kurilla.
According to a source familiar with the plan, the operation is expected to increase according to the response of the hutis. “This will be decisive,” added the source, emphasizing that this would not be a one -day event.
At the beginning of March, the hutis had warned that they would resume attacks on shipping ships if Israel continued to block Gaza aid.
Trump had also issued a warning to Iran, demanding the end of his support for the hutis “immediately.” Shortly after assuming the position, he restored the designation of the hutis as a foreign terrorist organization through an executive order.
In a direct message to the hutis, Trump threatened: “If the attacks do not stop, then hell will rain on you as nothing you have seen before.”
The Biden administration had previously made several strikes against the Hutis, since they interrupted international shipping in the Red Sea.
Trump criticized the approach of his predecessor, stating: “Joe Biden's response was pathetically weak, so the unbridled Hutis continued.”
Since Hamas' attack against Israel in October 2023, the hutis have launched more than 100 attacks on boats in the Red Sea, severely interrupting global trade in one of the most busy shipping lanes in the world.
Initially, the hutis framed their attacks as an effort to press Israel to stop their war after the terrorist attack of October 7. However, even when the shipping companies adjusted the routes to avoid the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the hutis continued their strikes.
(ABC News)
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