"I have ordered the US military to carry out a decisive and powerful military operation against the Huthi terrorists," writes Donald Trump on social media.
According to Trump, it involves a series of airstrikes against targets in Yemen. He promises "overwhelming deadly force" until the Huthi rebels stop threatening shipping in the region.
The US is attacking "terrorists' bases, leaders, and missile defense."
"No terrorist force should be allowed to prevent American commercial and naval vessels from sailing freely on the world's sea lanes," writes the president.
"Must cease"
Trump is also urging Iran to stop supporting the rebel group and promises to hold the country "fully responsible" for the Huthis' actions.
"Support for Huthi terrorists must cease immediately," writes Trump.
A series of explosions is reported from Sanaa on Saturday evening. Pictures on the internet show black smoke plumes at the city's airport, where there are also military installations.
Explosions are also said to have occurred in Saada, a Huthi stronghold in the north near the border with Saudi Arabia, and in Dhamar south of Sanaa.
In total, 13 civilians have been killed and nine injured, according to the Huthi-controlled health department.
The movement's political bureau warns that a response to the attacks is to be expected.
"Our Yemeni armed forces are fully prepared to meet escalation with escalation," reads a statement on the Huthis' own TV channel.
An anonymous American military source tells AP that more American airstrikes are to be expected.
Attack on ships
The attacks come just days after the Huthi movement said it would resume its attacks on Israeli ships off Yemen's coast, since Israel has not lifted the blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Israel imposed the blockade in early March to put pressure on Hamas, which is labeled as a terrorist organization.
The Huthi movement has since autumn 2023 attacked over 100 warships and civilian vessels, mainly in the Red Sea, in what is described as solidarity with Gaza's population. The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in January led to a pause in the attacks.
The US has, sometimes together with the UK, attacked Huthi targets in Yemen several times before, but this is the first time this year.
Saturday's attack was carried out by the US alone, according to an American military official. The American aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman – which is in the Red Sea along with an escort of three destroyers and a cruiser – participated in the operation.
Yemen is one of the poorest and most war-torn countries in the world. It is located on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
Yemen was formed when the two state formations South Yemen and North Yemen merged in 1990, but the republic came to be characterized by great contradictions and regular crises and conflicts.
In 2014, a full-scale civil war broke out, where the Huthi movement forced out the long-time president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The movement has since 2015 controlled large parts of Yemen and has controlled the capital Sanaa since then. Southern separatist groups control large areas in the south, and several extremist groups are active in the country.
In the bloody war – with hundreds of thousands of deaths and mass starvation – Iran and Iran-backed militias in the region have backed the Huthi movement, while Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia has gathered a coalition in support of the internationally recognized government.
Source: Landguiden/Utrikespolitiska institutet
