TRUMP has launched a massive attack on Houthi rebels in Yemen in a stark warning to the militants and their Iranian backers.
The US president ordered the series of airstrikes on capital Sanaa in response to the terror group’s attacks on Red Sea shipping.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump addressed the group directly: “YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!”
Trump also warned Iran to stop supporting the group and promised to hold them “fully accountable.”
He said: “Support for the Houthi terrorists must end IMMEDIATELY! Do NOT threaten the American People, their President, who has received one of the largest mandates in Presidential History, or Worldwide shipping lanes.
“If you do, BEWARE, because America will hold you fully accountable and, we won’t be nice about it!”
The Iran-backed Houthis reported explosions on Saturday evening, with images shared online showing black smoke rising over the Sanaa airport complex, including a sprawling military facility.
The Houthi-run health ministry said in a post on X that at least 31 civilians were killed and 101 others injured, most of them women and children.
The airstrikes come in response to the group’s months-long attacks on military and commercial ships in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have launched more than 100 attacks since November 2023, claiming they are targeting vessels linked to Israel over the war in Gaza.
But many of the ships attacked had no connection to Israel.
The group has seized one vessel, sunk two, and killed four sailors.
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According to Trump, the attacks have also cost the US and world economy “BILLIONS” of dollars.
The strikes come just days after the Houthis vowed to resume attacks on Israeli-linked ships in response to Israel cutting off aid to Gaza.
The group had paused its operations during a ceasefire but warned that its attacks would now expand to the Gulf of Aden, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and the Arabian Sea.
Trump’s attack was carried out by the USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group, which includes the carrier, three Navy destroyers, and one cruiser.
The strike group is currently operating in the Red Sea.
A US official confirmed that this was the first strike against the Houthis under Trump’s second administration and was conducted solely by the US.
This is not the first time the US has targeted the Houthi rebels. The US, Israel, and Britain have previously hit Houthi-held areas in Yemen.
Earlier this year, Trump ordered B-2 Stealth Bombers to attack five underground weapons storage sites in Houthi-controlled areas.
