These attacks reflect an important indication related to the Trump administration's approach toward adopting a further escalatory strategy against the Houthis.

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Mohammad Fawzy (South24 Center)

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US President Donald Trump said on March 15 that he has ordered the army to launch strikes on the Houthis in Yemen, warning them of repercussions if they don't stop their maritime attacks. In a post on his Truth Social media platform, Trump said: “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective”, while accusing the Houthis of choking shipping in the Red Sea, one of the most important waterways of the world. These attacks are the first such launched by the US against the Houthis since Trump’s return to the White House. This is in addition to the expanded and violent nature of the air and sea attacks. These attacks raise several questions about their significance along with the nature of the message that the US administration wants to convey through them as well as their possible implications.

First: Circumstances Related to the American Attacks

According to the US media, the main circumstances related to the US operation against the Houthis can be illustrated as below:

1- Death and Injuries of tens: According to the Ministry of Health affiliated with the Houthis in Sanaa, the US operation killed 53 civilians and wounded nearly 100 others. However, the White House announced that the American raids killed several Houthi leaders in Yemen, which is a remarkable change compared to previous operations. US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told ’ABC News‘ that the airstrikes actually targeted and killed many Houthi leaders.

2- Targeting of Houthi Military Infrastructure: Some reports said that the American airstrikes targeted Houthi locations in the governorates of Sanaa, Saada, Dhamar, Hajjah, and AlـBayda. According to the reports, the attacks focused on targeting the radars, air defenses, missiles, and drone systems of the Houthi militia. The air strikes were carried out by warplanes launched from the aircraft carrier ’Harry Truman‘ in the Red Sea. This is in addition to attacks by planes and drones launched from regional bases.

3- The Possible Continuation of the US attacks: It is to be noted that some US officials pointed to the possible continuation of the antiـHouthi attacks. This denotes expanded US military operations to achieve their goal. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told “CBS News”  We're not going to have these people controlling which ships can go through and which ones cannot”, and added that the attacks will continue until the Houthis “no longer have the capability to do that."

Secondly: The Indications of the US Operations

As aforementioned, the importance of the antiـHouthi airstrikes is that it is the first operation against the group since the Trump administration took office on January 20, 2025. This is in addition to the differences related to the size and the nature of this operation compared to those launched against the Houthis during the Biden administration. In this regard, the operation has the following important indications:

1- Trump’s Approach toward the Houthis: The latest US attacks and the measures taken by the Trump administration in its initial days against the Houthis, especially designating them as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), indicates that it has adopted an approach that is different from that of his first Presidential term. While Donald Trump relied on the “maximum pressure” concept and reducing direct confrontations with the Houthis during his first Presidential term, his current approach is based, along with the “maximum pressure” policy, on expanded military escalation against the group to ensure destroying the Houthi military capabilities and to restore the lost deterrence. Trump voiced this by saying that he will “use overwhelming lethal force” till his objective is achieved of militarily subjugating the group. He added that “Joe Biden’s response was pathetically weak, so the unrestrained Houthis just kept going”. This demonstrates that the new US approach is based on some main pillars. The first one is that the Trump administration will adopt the “maximum pressure” approach toward the Houthis. Secondly, this approach will be followed by more escalatory measures to ensure heightened pressure and encirclement of the group. Thirdly, the new US administration delivered a message to Joe Biden that the latter failed in dealing with the Houthis. Fourthly, this strategy means zero tolerance toward any files related to the Houthis under the justification of seeking exceptions or for humanitarian reasons.

2- Responding to Multiـlevel Houthi Escalation: The US attacks can’t be separated from the general context, meaning that they came as a response to the escalation adopted by the Houthis during the recent times. This has been demonstrated by a number of main indications, the first of which is the Houthi announcement of March 12, 2025 to implement its decision to ban Israeli ships from passing through the Red Sea. This practically means the Houthis’ resumption of their Red Sea attacks. The second is the Houthis adoption of a qualitative and remarkable escalation against the United States as they fired surface-to-air missiles (SAM) for the first time at an American F-16 fighter jet. Furthermore, the Houthis also targeted a US MQ-9 Reaper drone with a SAM while it was flying over Yemen outside the areas they control. The third indication is the warning delivered by Houthi Leader Abdulmalik AlـHouthi about resorting to big escalation in the Red Sea if Donald Trump carries out his plan of displacing the people of Gaza by force. The fourth is that the Houthis disclosed a new air defense system last week. Social media platforms affiliated with the Houthis circulated photos and information about the new system, called ‘Nasrallah’. The latter, according to sources, is locally manufactured and is capable of intercepting planes thousands of kilometers away. The Houthi militia haven’t officially disclosed the air defense system.

3- The US Desire to Weaken the Houthi Capabilities: The nature of the targets of the latest US attacks reflects that the United States doesn’t only want to deter the Houthis in a way that ensures securing maritime shipping in the Red Sea but also to expand its military operations to estimate the military capabilities of the religious group. This is shown by a set of main concerns. The first one is related to American estimates about the increase in the number of Houthi fighters from 220,000 in 2022 to nearly 350,000 by the end of 2024. The second concern is the remarkable growth of the Houthi military capabilities as the group possesses a variety of long- and medium-range missiles, as well as drones and mobile missile launchers, most of which are Iranian-made. The effect of this growth in capabilities has been seen in the group's ability to target maritime navigation in the Red Sea, in addition to threatening the US’ allies (targeting the Israeli depth). This has increased the US administration’s conviction that the group has become a threat to the regional security system and to the maritime lanes in the Middle East.

4- Escalatory Messages against Iran: It is remarkable that US officials, led by President Trump, have linked these latest attacks with Iran. Trump warned Iran by saying: "Support for the Houthi terrorists must end Immediately. Do not threaten the American People, their President, or Worldwide shipping lanes. If you do, beware, because America will hold you fully accountable and we won’t be nice about it”. On March 17, he again warned Iran in a post on Truth Social, saying “Let nobody be fooled! The hundreds of attacks being made by Houthi, all emanate from, and are created by, IRAN. … Iran has played “the innocent victim” of rogue terrorists from which they’ve lost control, but they haven’t lost control. They’re dictating every move, giving them the weapons, supplying them with money and highly sophisticated Military equipment, and even, so-called, “Intelligence.” Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!” In general, it seems that the American messages to Iran are related to two main directions, the first is the need to stop supporting and arming the Houthis. The second is probably an attempt to pressure Iran to engage in new talks related to the nuclear deal and to rely on threats to launch direct strikes against Tehran.

5- Messages to Hamas Linked to the Ceasefire Deal: An assumption put forward as explanation for the latest US attacks is that they also deliver a message to the Palestinian movement ’Hamas‘. The importance of this assumption is related to the statements made by the US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff who threatened the Hamas, saying “They should look at what we have done to the Houthis. I would encourage them to be more rational.“ It can be said that the latest US strikes against the Houthis have played into Israel’s hands at more than one level. The first is that they probably reflect US’ implicit approval or a greenlight to Israel to resume fighting with no opposition from Washington. The second is that the United States has decided to fight the Houthis on behalf of Israel to reduce its burden of having to engage in attacks and confrontations with the group.

6- American Messages to Russia and China: The latest US anti-Houthi attacks deliver implicit messages to Russia and China, in the wake of Beijing’s forays in the territorial waters of the Red Sea and Moscow’s efforts to build a military base in Port Sudan. Through these operations, and through the US’ presence in the Red Sea, directly or via military alliances such as the ’Prosperity Guardian’, the Trump administration is sending a message that it has presence in the Red Sea and won’t allow any rival forces to spread their influence in this important strategic region. Nonetheless, the US State Department said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov about the military anti-Houthi operations in Yemen.

Thirdly: Possible Implications 

The US’ latest anti-Houthi attacks have some implications, dominated by tension and escalation, as shown in the following points:

● Following the airstrikes, the Houthi militia announced that these attacks won't go unanswered. Houthi Spokesperson Yahya Sarea said that the group responded by targeting the US aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman and its naval vessels with ballistic missiles and drones. This means that the Houthis may resort to the “escape forward” policy by adopting more escalatory measures till reaching a deal or a formula that guarantees de-escalation. Furthermore, the Houthi Leader Abdulmalik Al-Houthi has said that US warships and vessels will be targeted if Washington continues attacking the group. He also threatened to impose a naval blockade on US ships.

● These developments push for further militarization of interactions in the Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab Strait, whether at the level of mutual confrontations between the United States and Britain on the one hand and the Houthis on the other, or at the level of the growing military and naval presence of many international and regional powers.

● All circumstances related to the Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and against Israel and the US confirm that the Houthis have become among the Iranian proxies that are capable of threatening Israeli and American interests in the region. This may push Iran to invest more resources in supporting the Houthis militarily, which may add an additional point of strength to Tehran in its confrontation with Tel Aviv and Washington.

In general, it can be said that the recent US anti-Houthi attacks are  specific in terms of the timing and the nature of their goals given that they came concurrently with the Houthi announcement about resuming their Red Sea and anti-Israel attacks. Furthermore, the operational nature of the US strikes are more violent than those launched during the Biden administration and are an important indication related to the Trump administration's approach of adopting a greater escalatory strategy against the Houthis. This is evident in the statements by US officials that point to the likelihood of continuation of these operations.