US ramps up pressure on Houthis, puts Iran on notice

WASHINGTON

U.S. airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen have eliminated several high-ranking leaders, Washington has said, noting that "all options remain on the table" in its stance toward Tehran.

The United States and Houthi rebels both vowed escalation after the U.S. launched airstrikes to deter the rebels from attacking military and commercial vessels on one of the world's busiest shipping corridors.

The Houthi-run Health Ministry said the U.S. strikes killed at least 53 people, including five women and two children, and wounded almost 100 in the capital of Sanaa and other provinces.

In response to the attack, the group claimed to have twice attacked an American aircraft carrier group within 24 hours, calling it retaliation for the deadly strikes.

According to Houthis' Al Masirah TV, the U.S. carried out new airstrikes on Yemen on Monday.

In an interview with ABC, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz said that the latest strikes differed from the countless strikes former President Joe Biden's administration launched against the rebel group.

"These were not kind of pinprick, back and forth, what ultimately proved to be feckless attacks," Waltz said.

“This was an overwhelming response that actually targeted multiple Houthi leaders and took them out. And the difference here is, one, going after the Houthi leadership, and two, holding Iran responsible."

President Donald Trump on March 15 vowed to use “overwhelming lethal force” until the Houthis cease their attacks and warned that Tehran would be held “fully accountable” for their actions.

While Houthis have yet to confirm, some reports claimed that six senior leaders were killed.

The Houthis have repeatedly targeted shipping in the Red Sea, sinking two vessels, in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The attacks stopped when a ceasefire took hold in January, but last week the Houthis said they would renew attacks against Israeli vessels after Israel cut off the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza this month.

In a speech aired late on March 16, the rebels’ secretive leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, warned: “We will confront escalation with escalation.”

“We will respond to the American enemy in its raids, in its attacks, with missile strikes, by targeting its aircraft carrier, its warships, its ships,” al-Houthi said. “However, we also still have escalation options. If it continues its aggression, we will move to additional escalation options.”

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told media, "The minute the Houthis say we'll stop shooting at your ships, we'll stop shooting at your drones. This campaign will end, but until then it will be unrelenting."

He said reopening freedom of navigation was a core national interest for the U.S. and that Iran had been "enabling the Houthis for far too long."

The strikes are not expected to be a single-day event and might continue for weeks, according to the sources.

Iran 'will be held responsible' for Huthi attacks: Trump

Trump declared he will hold Iran directly responsible for any future attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who have targeted multiple U.S. and other foreign ships in the Red Sea.

"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," Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people protested in Huthi-controlled parts of Yemen, the Iran-backed rebels' Al-Masirah TV showed.

Demonstrators waved placards and assault rifles, chanting "Death to America, death to Israel", at a huge protest in the capital Sanaa, while rallies were also held in Saada, Dhamar, Hodeida and Amran.

The demonstrations were called by the rebel group's leader Abdulmalik al-Huthi.

"Yemen will never back down — we defy the Americans, we defy the Zionists," said a man shouting slogans to the crowd.

Tension with Iran

With Washinton warnings, the security adviser also commented on the potential for direct military action against Iran.

"Well, all actions are always on the table with the president. But Iran needs to hear him loud and clear. It is completely unacceptable and it will be stopped,” Waltz said.

“The level of support that they’ve been providing the Houthis, just like they have Hezbollah, just like they have the militias in Iraq, Hamas and others.”

“The difference here is the Houthis have incredibly sophisticated air defenses, and they also have anti-shipping cruise missiles, drones, sea skimming types of attack drones and other ballistic missiles even.”

He also echoed the same stance against Iran’s nuclear program.

“What the president has completely, has repeatedly said is that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

Iran on Monday said that a letter it received from Trump, who has called for striking a nuclear deal with the Islamic republic, echoed his public statements.

"Our response will be provided through the appropriate channels once the assessment is complete," Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told a news conference in Tehran.