US forces launched large-scale and deadly strikes on Houthi targets across seven Yemeni governorates this weekend, marking the first military action against the group since President Donald Trump took office and re-listed the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO). The declared objectives of the attacks are to restore deterrence and degrade Houthi capabilities to launch attacks in the Red Sea, while also sending a message to the Iranian regime, which Trump holds responsible for supplying the Houthis with weapons.1Phil Stewart and Mohammed Ghobar, “Trump launches large-scale strikes on Yemen’s Houthis, at least 31 killed,” Reuters, 16 March 2025
ACLED Senior Analyst for Yemen and the Gulf Luca Nevola said: “This wave of airstrikes and the FTO designation mark a shift in US policy and military strategy. As confirmed by US national security adviser Mike Waltz,2Quinn Scanlan, “US strikes ‘took out’ multiple Houthi leaders: National security adviser Mike Waltz,” ABC News, 17 March 2025 the strikes pursued a decapitation strategy, targeting Houthi leaders and high-value objectives. This is evident in the strikes on urban areas — such as the al-Jiraf neighborhood, north of Sanaa — leading to heightened lethality. Overall, the Houthi-run Health Ministry reported that the airstrikes killed 53 people and injured dozens of others,3Phil Stewart, Mohammed Ghobari and Gabriella Borter, “US vows to keep hitting Houthis until shipping attacks stop,” Reuters, 16 March 2025 surpassing the 34 fatalities recorded in all previous US and UK attacks combined since the beginning of the Red Sea crisis, according to ACLED. The geographical scope of the strikes was also extended to previously untargeted areas and governorates, such as Marib.”
Previous rounds of joint US and UK airstrikes began on 12 January 2024, under Operation Poseidon Archer, which aimed to degrade Houthi capabilities through pre-planned strikes on stationary military assets and dynamic targeting of mobile weapons systems. They continued into 2025 but yielded limited success. In the final quarter of 2024, Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea gradually declined, with the group shifting focus to Israel and US warships, and ultimately ceased on 19 January, coinciding with the Gaza ceasefire. Simultaneously, US strikes also ceased.
Nevola continues, “The recent escalatory cycle was reignited by the Houthi announcement on 11 March of a resumption of attacks against Israel after aid deliveries to Gaza were stopped. Following the latest round of US airstrikes, the Houthis responded with three attacks in the Red Sea, targeting the USS Harry Truman. This pattern of tit-for-tat retaliations is likely to continue in the near future, amplified by the end of the ceasefire in Gaza.”
ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data) is an independent, impartial, international non-profit organization collecting data on violent conflict and protest in all countries and territories in the world.
