Trump Orders Military Action Against Houthi Rebels as Yemen Is Rocked by Massive Airstrikes Eliminating Top Leaders

President Trump has ordered the military to carry out "decisive and powerful" strikes against Houthi militants in Yemen, as an airstrike hit capital, Sanaa. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he ordered a series of military strikes, vowing to deploy "overwhelming lethal force" until the Iran-backed Houthi rebels halt their assaults on ships along a vital maritime route.

"Our brave Warfighters are right now carrying out aerial attacks on the terrorists' bases, leaders, and missile defenses to protect American shipping, air, and naval assets, and to restore Navigational Freedom," he wrote, adding, "No terrorist force will stop American commercial and naval vessels from freely sailing the Waterways of the World."

Yemen Under Fire

Trump also issued a warning to Iran, demanding that it cease its support for the rebel group and vowing to hold the nation "fully accountable" for the actions of its proxy forces. The United States, along with Israel and Britain, has previously targeted Houthi-controlled regions in Yemen.

Videos circulating on X, formerly known as Twitter, capture multiple airstrikes striking areas near Sanaa International Airport, with reports of several loud explosions.

Photos show thick black smoke rising above the airport complex, which also houses a large military facility. Reports indicate that at least nine people have been killed, while another nine have sustained injuries due to the attacks.

Houthi-controlled Al Masirah TV reported that the airstrikes hit a residential area in the Shu'aub district, located just north of the capital.

Also, AI Masirah TV reported that the Islamic Jihad Movement condemned the strikes, calling the "US aggression" "blatant support for the Zionist entity and its crimes against our Palestinian people and the peoples of the region, especially in Syria and Lebanon."

It comes after a missile launched by Houthi militants at Israel's main airport in retaliation for an earlier attack by Israeli forces on a Yemeni runway. In response to Thursday's airstrikes in Sanaa, the Houthis targeted Ben Gurion Airport, which is located just ten miles from Tel Aviv.

Israeli forces had previously struck the Yemeni airport while World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was boarding a flight.

Unexpected but Planned

According to the United Nations, the attack resulted in three deaths and left dozens wounded. Israeli officials said that the Houthi missile was intercepted, but 18 people sustained minor injuries while rushing to bomb shelters, and flights were delayed for around 30 minutes.

The Houthis claimed that the airport had been hit and reported that drones were also deployed to strike Tel Aviv and a vessel in the Arabian Sea. "It is a true commitment of support for our Palestinian people and their resistance, and it exerts real pressure to break the unjust siege on Gaza," Hamas said in a statement.

"We call on the nations of the Arab and Muslim world, as well as all free people around the globe, to intensify their effective actions to pressure the Zionist occupation and its supporters until the aggression ends, the siege on Gaza is lifted and humanitarian aid reaches our besieged people," Hamas added.

The Houthis announced they were reinstating a "ban on the passage of all Israeli ships" across the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab strait, Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea. This decision came after Israel failed to meet a four-day deadline set by the group to allow the resumption of aid deliveries to Gaza.

Earlier this month, Israel halted all humanitarian aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip, aiming to pressure Hamas into agreeing to extend the ongoing ceasefire rather than advancing to the next phase of the conflict.