Trump weighed strikes against Houthis in Yemen before holding off

President Donald Trump over the weekend considered ordering US strikes against the Houthis in Yemen but ultimately decided to hold off, according to two US officials cited in reporting. The decision followed two phone calls in a single day from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who urged Trump to launch strikes as the Iran-backed Houthis closed in on a vital Red Sea chokepoint. Trump rejected the request and agreed only to provide intelligence and targeting data, with US officials stating they would not take military action as long as the Houthis did not interrupt non-Saudi ship traffic in the Red Sea. In a separate call with Yemen's president, Trump did not pledge military support against the Houthis, according to sources cited by The Hindu. Meanwhile, Houthi fighters have launched a lightning advance this month, pushing to seize strategic highlands to cut off the Red Sea coast from remaining areas held by Saudi-backed forces. Yemeni government forces repelled fierce Houthi attacks outside Marib, killing at least 80 fighters and destroying nine military vehicles, according to Swarajya. The Houthi advance has extended the wider Middle East conflict to a new theatre and further threatens global energy shipping routes.

Global Impact

Geopolitically, the US abstention from direct strikes leaves Saudi Arabia to counter the Houthi advance largely on its own, potentially straining US-Saudi relations and testing the reliability of US security guarantees in the Gulf. Economically, the Houthi push toward the Red Sea coast threatens one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints, with potential ripple effects on global oil and container shipping if the group gains the ability to disrupt traffic beyond Saudi-linked vessels.