USA
US strikes kill Houthi security chief in Yemen, reports say
US Central Command has continued to carry out operations against the Iran-backed terror group
March 17, 2025 12:38
US Central Command has continued to carry out operations against the Iran-backed terror group
March 17, 2025 12:38The head of security of Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi was reportedly killed in an American airstrike targeting positions of the Iran-backed rebel group in Yemen, according to a Saudi report on Monday which cited Israeli media.
United States Central Command (Centcom) has continued its strikes on the Houthis overnight as part of its response to the group’s threat to global shipping and US assets in the region.
The Houthis have claimed that 53 people were killed because in the strikes, which began on Saturday. US officials have confirmed the attacks were part of a series of operations aimed at dismantling Houthi military capabilities.
White House national security adviser Mike Waltz, speaking to ABC News on Monday, said the US strikes “took out” several Houthi leaders. “We just hit them with overwhelming force and put Iran on notice that enough is enough,” he added in an appearance on Fox News.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed on Sunday that the United States would conduct "unrelenting" strikes against the Houthis until the group ceases its military actions targeting US assets and global shipping lanes.
On Sunday, the Houthis claimed responsibility for striking the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and other US naval vessels in the Red Sea. The US, however, said its forces had successfully intercepted 11 Houthi drones.
A US official told the Jerusalem Post on Saturday that the strikes were also a message to Iran, especially as the Trump administration was exploring negotiations about Tehran’s nuclear programme. A Reuters source indicated that the strikes could continue for “days, possibly weeks.”
Waltz emphasised that the strikes "targeted multiple Houthi leaders and took them out" and described the campaign as a clear statement to Iran. “Enough is enough,” he said.
Defence Secretary Hegseth further stressed the importance of these actions, calling the strikes "about freedom of navigation and restoring deterrence" in the region. "We will not allow the Houthis to continue their actions unchecked," Hegseth said in a Fox Business interview.
The Houthis have vowed to continue targeting Red Sea shipping until Israel lifts its blockade of Gaza, pledging that their forces would retaliate against the US strikes.
Since November 2023, they have launched numerous attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, sinking two ships, seizing a third, and killing four crew members.
President Donald Trump commented on the US airstrikes, ”We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective."
Criticising the Houthis for targeting US forces and allies, he added that their "piracy, violence, and terrorism" had cost billions and put lives at risk. He warned the Houthis that if they did not cease their actions, “Hell will rain down upon you like nothing you have ever seen before.”