What’s happening in Yemen? A breakdown of the Houthi-US violence

As Yemen’s Houthis and the United States square off next to one of the world’s most important shipping lanes, a new crisis is brewing.

More than 100 people were hurt and killed by US airstrikes in Yemen on Saturday night, according to Yemeni media and sources.

On Sunday evening, the Houthis claimed a response from a US warship, and the US bombed Yemen once more.

What caused this tit-for-tat to exist? What started it, exactly? What’s the purpose, then?

What we know is as follows.

What transpired in Yemen?

The US has been bombing Yemen twice in a row, claiming to be aiming at Houthi leaders.

So far, 53 people have died on the ground, including children. The attacks also caused close to 100 more injuries.

The attacks took place where?

Sanaa, the Houthis’s capital city, has been the target of US attacks, as have Saada, Saada, Saada, and Hodeidah, as well as the port and city of Hodeidah.

Who is the target?

Houthi leaders are being targeted by US officials.

However, the Houthis claim that some of the murdered were children and that pictures of the alleged victims have been circulated.

Trump’s strikes were very clearly targeting Houthi leadership, according to independent Yemen analyst Nick Brumfield, who was quoted as saying, “They didn’t seem to care if any civilians got in the way.” “The strikes in Sanaa targeted a residential neighborhood where many Houthi leaders reside.”

What is the US’s desire?

President Donald Trump claims that the Houthis “targeted our Troops and Allies,” and that the US will bomb Yemen until the Houthis are defeated.

Trump and his defense secretary Pete Hegseth have also asserted that Iran is responsible for the Houthis’ actions and that it is now “on notice.”

Marco Rubio, the US’s secretary of state, claimed he and Sergey Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, coordinated the attacks on Yemen.

The Houthis reacted, did they?

The Houthis attacked the USS Harry S. Truman and its warships twice, according to the Houthis. There are no comments from the US.

According to the BBC, the Houthis denounced the US and UK attacks, which did not carry out the bombing but assisted with refueling.

Retaliation for the US attacks was a promise made by Houthi leaders.

Iran is gaining heat, but why?

According to US officials, Iran is reportedly supporting Houthi activities in the Red Sea.

Although some claim that the organization is an Iranian proxy, many analysts and think tanks like Brookings and the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) nonetheless view them as willing partners.

Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, claimed that the US government “has no authority or business dictating Iranian foreign policy.”

He declared his “end support for Israeli genocide and terrorism” on Sunday on X, a former Twitter user.

Stop the Yemeni people’s murder.

What gave rise to this?

Israel rebuffed humanitarian requests for Gaza on March 2, further putting an enclave on the verge of food and medicine starvation.

If Israel refused to reopen the crossings and allow aid in, the Houthis would resume attacking Israel-linked ships passing through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait on their way to the Suez Canal five days later, Houthi leader Abdelmalak al-Houthi established a four-day deadline.

The Houthis’ Red Sea operations against Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, as well as Bab al-Mandeb, were resumed on March 11 through spokesperson Yahya Saree.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have been launching attacks on Israeli-connected ships.

The Houthis complied with a ceasefire that was established in Gaza on January 19 and the attacks came to an end.

According to Brumfield, “They did shoot at an F-16 a few weeks after the FTO [designation] and downed an MQ-9 saying it was in Hodeidah airspace,” but they still adhered to their word in terms of shipping.

About four years after his predecessor, Joe Biden, removed the designation, the Trump administration reapplied it to the Houthis on March 4.

What impact have the Houthi attacks currently had?

Nearly 15% of all global sea trade occurs in the Red Sea.

Much of that trade has been forced to travel along a much longer, more expensive route around Africa’s southern coast, increasing insurance costs and causing global inflation to rise.

Eight people have reportedly been killed and others have been injured in the Houthis’ attacks. The majority of their attacks have not left anyone dead.

Will the US attacks dissuade the Houthis?

Probability is not believed, if their representatives are to be believed.

According to the Houthis’ Supreme Political Council, they would not be deterred but instead would “escalate the situation to a more severe and dire level.”

The statement continued, “Targeting civilians demonstrates America’s inability to deal with the situation.”

In the past, the Houthis’ Red Sea attacks and subsequent US attacks on Yemen only aided in the organization’s ability to recruit fighters.

There is little evidence that the Houthis are willing to give in, despite the fact that these attacks may be larger than what they have previously experienced.

Source: Aljazeera